The Bay Area Lyme Foundation has announced a $6.5 million gift from the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation in support of Lyme disease research.

The gift — the largest private donation ever for Lyme disease research — will support the foundation's efforts to encourage collaboration among researchers, significantly increase the amount of research being conducted, fund innovative projects aimed at making it easier to diagnose and cure the disease, and attract new talent to the field of Lyme Disease research.

"I was shocked to learn how many people suffer from Lyme disease in silence, and how much we still need to do to raise awareness and help find a cure," said Cohen Foundation president Alex Cohen. "This gift is incredibly personal to me as I have experienced, first-hand, the chronic and debilitating side effects of this relatively unknown disease. We share Bay Area Lyme Foundation’s desire to find a cure for Lyme disease and hope that this gift will help pave the way to that important work."