$50,000 Childhood Cancer Research Grant Awarded to Vanderbilt University Medical Center

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (November 19, 2014) – The St. Baldrick’s Foundation, a volunteer-driven and donor-centered charity dedicated to raising money for childhood cancer research, is proud to award a one-year, $50,000 grant to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. This grant is one of 40 infrastructure grants awarded as part of the Foundation’s fall grant cycle, totaling more than $2.5 million and surpassing last year’s total awarded during this same period.

Worldwide a child is diagnosed every 3 minutes, and in the U.S., more children die of childhood cancer than any other disease. Of those that survive, 80 percent will have severe or life-threatening conditions as a result of treatment. St. Baldrick’s infrastructure grants provide resources to institutions enabling them to conduct more research and enroll more children in ongoing clinical trials.

This grant will fund the hire of a nurse who will support the Innovative Therapy program of the Vanderbilt Childhood Cancer Program to allow a greater number of pediatric oncology patients to be enrolled on phase I/II trials.

The Vanderbilt Childhood Cancer Program is a place of healing for pediatric cancer patients and their families. As a collaboration between the Vanderbilt Department of Pediatrics, Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, and Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, the Children’s Cancer Program is dedicated to providing the most promising therapies and to advancing research in all types of childhood cancers.

“We want to be able to provide every possibility for treatment and cure to our patients. This grant will allow us to provide increased access to the newest drugs for our patients here at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt,” said Howard Katzenstein, M.D, professor of Pediatrics and medical director for Pediatric Hematology Oncology.

This series of grants, combined with the more than $24.7 million awarded in July to fund cutting-edge research, brings the St. Baldrick’s Foundation’s funding total to more than $27.2 million awarded in 2014. Grants were awarded based on the need of the institution and its patients, anticipated results of the grant and local participation in St. Baldrick’s fundraising events and activities.

“These grants are critically important to saving children’s lives, and would not be possible without our dedicated volunteers and generous donors who believe kids deserve better than medicine is currently able to provide,” said Kathleen Ruddy, chief executive officer for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation.

To learn how you can get involved visit www.StBaldricks.org, and connect with St. Baldrick’s on social media via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Vimeo.

About St. Baldrick’s Foundation
The St. Baldrick’s Foundation is a volunteer-driven charity committed to funding the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives. St. Baldrick’s coordinates its signature head-shaving events worldwide where participants collect pledges to shave their heads in solidarity with kids with cancer, raising money to fund research. Since 2005, St. Baldrick’s has awarded more than $154 million to support lifesaving research, making the Foundation the largest private funder of childhood cancer research grants. St. Baldrick’s funds are granted to some of the most brilliant childhood cancer research experts in the world and to younger professionals who will be the experts of tomorrow. Funds awarded also enable hundreds of local institutions to participate in national pediatric cancer clinical trials, and the new International Scholar grants train researchers to work in developing countries. For more information about the St. Baldrick’s Foundation please call 1.888.899.BALD or visit www.StBaldricks.org.

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