In a time of underfunded hospitals and scarce government grants, our board members and volunteers raise vital funds through a variety of events and campaigns that has allowed Pediatric Cancer Foundation to contribute over $20 million to the leading pediatric oncology institutions. Pediatric Cancer Foundation proudly bridges funding gaps by providing seed grants for innovative research that holds great promise but does not yet qualify for federal grants or larger funding opportunities.
Join Our Mission. Apply for a Grant.
Interested in becoming one of Pediatric Cancer Foundation’s partners? Fill out our grant application and we will be in touch.
Through the past fifty years, Pediatric Cancer Foundation has had an enormous impact on the advancements of both the technology and the medicine used to treat children with cancer. By funding ground-breaking research and early stage clinical trials, survival rates have increased from 58% up to just over 80%.
“With the very kind support of the Pediatric Cancer Foundation, we have been able to move very quickly establishing novel institutional clinical trials focusing on the way we deliver drugs directly into the brain tumors. The first worldwide trial using Convection Enhanced Delivery via subcutaneous pump in children with Diffuse pontine glioma has opened with impressive preliminary results.
We are also about to open the first ever in children Non-invasive Focused Ultrasound study that will allow open the blood brain barrier and drugs to reach the target in children with diffuse pontine glioma.
A huge thank you to Pediatric Cancer Foundation for the incredible support for all these efforts… “
Pediatric Cancer Foundation Developmental Therapeutics Program (PCFDTP)
The Pediatric Cancer Foundation Developmental Therapeutics Program (PCFDTP) is a keystone of the innovative care and clinical research within the Division of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation at Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC). Our longstanding partnership with the Pediatric Cancer Foundation has given us the tremendous opportunity to establish a robust translational research program that includes clinical comprehensive tumor sequencing, basic science research to define novel therapeutic targets, and clinical trials to bring innovative treatments directly to patients. Our program is one of only 21 COG Phase I (first-in-child) programs designated by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to offer early drug development trials to children with incurable cancer, and is the only such program in the New York, Northern New Jersey and Connecticut tri-state region, servicing a population in excess of 20 million. We are deeply indebted to the Pediatric Cancer Foundation for over 10 years of generous support that has allowed the program’s continued growth.
Pediatric Cancer Foundation Developmental Therapeutics Program (PCFDTP)
“In these extraordinary times, the support of Pediatric Cancer Foundation has allowed us to continue to offer novel therapies to children with relapsed cancer, to begin ground-breaking trials for inoperable brain tumors, and to examine the immune microenvironment of pediatric solid tumors.”
Pediatric Cancer Foundation Developmental Therapeutics Program (PCFDTP)
Development of immunologic therapy for the treatment of pediatric solid organ malignancies, with a focus on Wilms tumor
“I’m one of the Pediatric Surgeons and the Director of Surgical Oncology at New-York Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital. The Pediatric Cancer Foundation has been a resolute partner to and supporter of our Division for many years. We have depended on your organization’s commitment to eradicating pediatric cancers, raising awareness, and providing funding for the necessary work that aspires to achieve these goals. We greatly appreciate and sincerely thank you for your dedication and unwavering support. My research has focused on Wilms tumor, with the evaluation of gene expression and immune responses in order to investigate mechanisms of disease, immunoregulation, and the effects of chemotherapy to identify novel treatment strategies for patients with advanced, recurrent, and/or metastatic disease. We are extremely excited to be involved in this work, and look forward to continued collaboration and productivity.”
Drs. Lipton and Blanc’s work focuses on understanding how bone cancer develops in patients with a rare genetic disease. Diamond Blackfan anemia (DBA) is a rare inherited bone marrow failure syndrome characterized by red cell failure, congenital anomalies, poor linear growth and cancer predisposition. The overall goals of this research are (1) to understand the defects in bone development (poor linear growth, osteopenia, skeletal anomalies) as a consequence of RP haploinsufficiency (2) to acquire a fuller understanding of the etiology of OS in the context of DBA, and thus (3) to determine the role of ribosomal protein gene mutations in oncogenesis, using DBA as a model. Recently, their work has been accepted for an oral presentation at the International Society for Pediatric Oncology (SIOP) in Lyon, France in October, 2019. This project has taken almost 5 years to get to this stage. They now have a mouse model that is predisposed to develop osteogenic sarcoma. The next stage of the project is to map out the molecular changes that lead to tumorigenesis in the hope that they can identify molecular targets for therapy. As many know, therapy for osteogenic sarcoma has been stalled with no significant improvements in survival for decades. They are hopeful that this mouse model can be exploited by their group as well as other investigators to improve therapy for this cancer. There is no doubt that without the support of Pediatric Cancer Foundation, they would not have been able to accomplish this work. Our contribution will be acknowledged in Lyon.
Pediatric Cancer Foundation has been providing support to The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research and Cohen Children’s Medical Center for over 15 consecutive years. The team has garnered major grants from the NIH, DOD and the CDC, all based upon work initially supported by Pediatric Cancer Foundation.
Research funded by Pediatric Cancer Foundation at The Feinstein Institute has been directed towards studying and understanding Diamond Blackfan anemia.
“Pediatric Cancer Foundation has supported my science for over 20 years. In that time my Division has grown and we have spun off independent investigators. Pediatric Cancer Foundation has allowed us to start projects that have resulted in numerous NIH and DOD funded grants. Pediatric Cancer Foundation has provided the seed money that funds the acquisition of the necessary preliminary data without which we could not compete for federal funding. Of note Pediatric Cancer Foundation was not been deterred by the COVID19 pandemic. I am honored to have my research supported by Pediatric Cancer Foundation.”
“Thank you so much for allowing us to continue our research in such difficult times! Pediatric cancer research cannot be put in quarantine! With your support, my lab is functioning at pre-COVID19 capacity.”
“We want to thank Pediatric Cancer Foundation for their generous grant support to our program at the Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital at Westchester Medical Center. This grant support from Pediatric Cancer Foundation in large part was critical to our success in our B-Cell Lymphoma and Hodgkin Lymphoma program in 2020 resulting in patients achieving 100 percent complete responses and survival with targeted antibody therapy treatments.”
“On behalf of MSK Kids, I am honored to have the opportunity to thank the Pediatric Cancer Foundation for its longstanding commitment to our institution. Since 1997, Pediatric Cancer Foundatino has provided vital funds that have allowed our investigators to pursue exciting new research initiatives with agility.
This year has been a challenging year for laboratory research because COVID-19 necessitated that we close our labs for 2 months. Thankfully, we have now resumed all research activity and now we are continuing to push forward with our search for new treatments for pediatric cancers. As the largest pediatric oncology program in the nation, we are delighted to have a dedicated partner in Pediatric Cancer Foundation as we strive to deliver the best available care for children with cancer today, while simultaneously doing the research that will improve outcomes for pediatric oncology patients in the future. In the face of a challenge affecting us all, thank you for your commitment to the cause of pediatric cancer.”
“Support from the Pediatric Cancer Foundation has enabled my group to translate our findings in the laboratory into novel approaches for treating children with high-risk cancers. “
Elizabeth A. Raetz, MD
Division Chief, Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Medical Director, Hassenfeld Children’s Center Director, NYU Cancer Institute The Julie and Edward J. Minskoff Professor of Pediatrics
“Generous support from Pediatric Cancer Foundation over many years has led to important discoveries in childhood leukemia. Our most significant accomplishments in 2020 were discoveries from the Carroll laboratory, where two postgraduate fellows are currently training, demonstrating the roles of both the epigenome and immune microenvironment in imparting resistance to conventional leukemia therapy. These discoveries will pave the way for new therapeutic interventions and current and past postgraduate fellows supported by Pediatric Cancer Foundation have actively participated in this work and are co-authors on recent 2020 publications.”
A quote from a former fellow:
As a fellow in Pediatric Hematology/Oncology with funding from Pediatric Cancer Foundation, the research I was able to perform really marked the beginning of my ability to make meaningful contributions to our field’s understanding of pediatric leukemia. This research helped further our understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying disease relapse, and will hopefully lead to improved therapies for children. And for me personally, this funded fellowship was the foundational step in my career path – my “on ramp” to my current role in which I am able to continue investigating new therapies for children with cancer.
Another quote from a former fellow:
Pediatric Cancer Research receives only 4% of the national cancer budget from the NIH making organizations like Pediatric Cancer Foundation critical to our ability to advance the field of pediatric oncology. Additionally, pediatric oncology fellowships are only partially funded by the ACGME and institutions are often unable to support trainee salaries. Pediatric Cancer Foundation has been integral to filling both gaps. My Pediatric Cancer Foundation funding during fellowship allowed me to complete my training in pediatric oncology and jumpstart my career at NYU as a pediatric oncologist. It allowed me protected time in the lab to focus on my research and ultimately publish my work to help advance the field of pediatric cancer. I am forever grateful to Pediatric Cancer Foundation and their generous donors for allowing NYU to continue to train oncologists to carry on the legacy that came before us and deliver stellar care to children with cancer.
“For more than 20 years, our lab’s work for children with cancer has been sustained by the Pediatric Cancer Foundation. Pediatric Cancer Foundation never let us forget that we are answering the call of mothers and fathers, grandparents, children, and families of children with cancer – and that together we have advanced treatment and saved lives. Together, we have not only forged new treatments, but trained a whole generation of young scientists with the same shared commitment.”
Mount Sinai Health System
“Pediatric Cancer Foundation financial support allowed us to collect and analyze data from a large number of children who were at risk for severe graft-vs-host disease or GVHD, the major complication of bone marrow transplant. These analyses were a major accomplishment and showed that a blood test that we developed that predicts GVHD outcomes in adults also works for children.”
“Pediatric Cancer Foundation support allows us to understand the natural history of GVHD and to design the next generation of clinical trials to make BMT safer and more effective for pediatric patients.”