Funding supports researchers focused on the most pressing needs, including development of new therapies for hard- to-treat cancers and unlocking access to shared data.

Children’s Cancer Research Fund (CCRF) is proud to award $10.5 million in its latest round of funding. The new grants support 12 research organizations that are working to improve treatment and outcomes for children and adolescents with cancer.

The grants fuel research in a few key areas of need, including the development of new therapies for some of the hardest to treat cancers like acute myeloid leukemia, sarcomas and relapsed liver cancer, as well as support of exceptional investigators and physicians still early in their careers. In addition, funds will enable three organizations to address a major barrier in pediatric cancer research—the lack of cohesive, complete data sets readily accessible to all researchers. Solving this issue will support collaboration and be key to finding cures for these rare diseases.

The CCRF awards come on the heels of a challenging year in the research community. Because of the pandemic, most research labs were closed for months, halting or delaying important progress. In addition, philanthropic support from many foundations declined amidst the economic challenges. With only 4% of federal cancer funding earmarked for childhood cancers, grants from organizations like CCRF are crucial to advancing research.

“Support from CCRF and its donors allows researchers to push forward and solve the biggest challenges in childhood cancer,” said Dr. Doug Hawkins, chair of Children’s Oncology Group (COG), one of the recipients of a CCRF award. “This grant will increase COG’s statistical bandwidth and have an immediately positive impact on the overall value of information collected during our clinical research.”

More than 40,000 kids undergo treatment for cancer each year, and every day, 46 new families in the United States will hear the words “your child has cancer.” Cancer is also the leading cause of death by disease for American children.

“Thanks to research, childhood cancer survival rates have improved in the last few decades. However for children with the most difficult to treat cancers, the needle has not moved significantly enough,” said Daniel Gumnit, CEO of Children’s Cancer Research Fund. “That’s why we have focused our funding on the most pressing needs in pediatric cancer, hoping to accelerate the discovery of new or less toxic therapies for hard-to-treat cancers.”

CCRF awarded grants to the following organizations:

• Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago
• Childhood Cancer & Leukemia International Consortium
• Children's Cancer Therapy Development Institute, Oregon
• Children's Minnesota
• Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
• Children’s Oncology Group
• Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston
• Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore
• St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis
• University of California-San Francisco
• University of Chicago
• University of Minnesota Masonic Cancer Center, Minneapolis