Grants Search Results

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common type of childhood cancer. Although most children and adolescents are cured with modern treatments, relapsed/refractory ALL remains one of the most common causes of death from pediatric cancer. This observation highlights the importance of understanding why the leukemia cells of some children are difficult to kill with modern drugs (this is called intrinsic resistance). Glucocorticoids are a type of drug that have been used to treat ALL for over 50 years and are given to all children with ALL. It is known that it is harder to cure children with ALL when their leukemia cells show intrinsic resistance to glucocorticoids. He is now working to understand how IL7 makes ALL cells resistant to glucocorticoid drugs and to use this knowledge to develop ways to cure more patients. He has identified drugs that appear to suppress the effects of IL7 on ALL cells and that make them more sensitive to glucocorticoids. They believe that combining one of these drugs with glucocorticoids could cure more children with ALL in the future.

Pediatric acute leukemias are aggressive blood cancers that result in many childhood cancer deaths despite intensive treatments. Because these leukemias are highly sensitive to radiation, researchers have developed a technology called radioimmunotherapy. Radioimmunotherapy uses antibodies to deliver a radiation payload directly to cancer cells. Most existing radioimmunotherapies are directed against two cell surface proteins called CD33 or CD45. However, because these proteins are also found on many normal blood cells, the amount of radioimmunotherapy that can be safely given via CD33 or CD45 antibodies is limited.

As the recipient of the Emily Beazley's Kures for Kids Fund St. Baldrick's Research Grant, Dr. Walter is developing and rigorously testing a new form of radioimmunotherapy that is directed against CD123. CD123 is found on only a few normal blood cells but is heavily expressed on leukemia cells in most children with acute leukemia. Moreover, CD123 is particularly attractive as a target as it is widely overexpressed on underlying leukemic stem cells (the rare cells that have the ability to generate and fuel these cancers), whereas normal blood stem cells express little or no CD123. These studies are the first to test the value of CD123-targeting radioimmunotherapy and will guide researchers towards bringing this new, less toxic treatment to pediatric patients. At the age of 8, Emily was diagnosed with Stage III T-cell lymphoblastic non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Her cancer was extremely aggressive, and she bravely battled it through three relapses. Her family prayed for a miracle but discovered Emily herself was the miracle. She inspired a community to come together to show love and changed lives with her message: “You gotta stay strong, you gotta stay positive, no matter what happens.” Emily passed away in 2015 at age of 12. She often talked about her dream of starting a foundation that funded research. She named it “Kures for Kids”. Her family and friends carry on her dream and her mission with this Hero Fund.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: Consortium for Childhood Cancer Predisposition. For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: Emory University, Atlanta, GA.

Osteosarcoma is a cancer of bone that happens in young people. Dr. Davis and colleagues are trying to find ways to help the immune system fight off tumor cells, which may help us find a cure. They are examining all of the different type of immune cells in over 100 osteosarcoma tumor samples to identify how patterns in the cells match with other characteristics, such as how well a patient does with standard osteosarcoma treatment. They are also looking at biopsies from patients before and after immune therapy and will try to boost responses to immune therapy with a targeted drug. By understanding the way the immune system "sees" (or doesn't see) osteosarcoma, they will be able to predict which patients will benefit from different types of immune therapy and who will need other drugs added to their treatment regimen.

A portion of this grant is generously supported by the Sweet Caroline Fund, a St. Baldrick's Hero Fund, created to honor the memory of Caroline Richards who was diagnosed in 2014 with osteosarcoma in her right arm when she was 11 years old. She persevered through rigorous treatments with a giving spirit and a contagious smile, always thinking of how to make others happy or laugh. Caroline sadly lost her battle a year later but this fund pays tribute to her compassion for others by supporting osteosarcoma research to help kids with cancer.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

Outcomes for children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the most common pediatric cancer, are dependent on age, biological subtype, and early response to therapy. Survival for certain subgroups have improved by intensifying therapy. Patients with persistent leukemia after the first month of therapy have an increased risk of future relapse, regardless of underlying leukemia subtype or treatment protocol. Therefore, patients with even low levels of persistent leukemia receive intensified therapy to induce complete molecular remission prior to stem cell transplant, making therapeutic targeting of low level residual leukemia important in the frontline setting. However, the biological features of this minimal residual disease have not been assessed and therefore precision approaches are currently out of reach. Understanding the biology of residual leukemia has critical implications for ongoing therapy. Vulnerabilities specific to leukemia cells that have survived during the early phases can be an avenue for future clinical trials for this population of patients. The biology of these rare leukemia cells may also be a window into the broader dynamics of ALL eradication. Even in cases with great responses to induction therapy with no detectable disease, patients require years of therapy to reduce the risk of relapse, demonstrating the residual leukemia cells are present. Such undetectable residual leukemia likely has similar biology to low level residual leukemia. Dr. Alexander is combining proven clinical tools that carry rich prognostic information, with flow cytometry approaches to isolate rare leukemia cells, and to utilize novel genomic tools including single cell analysis to describe the biology of residual leukemia.

Based on progress to date, Dr. Johnston was awarded a new grant in 2022 to fund an additional year of this Scholar grant. Hospice (home-based end of life care focusing on pain control and emotional support) leads to better quality of life for the dying person and easier grief for families when an adult dies of cancer. We do not know if the same is true in children. We do not know rates of hospice use in children dying of cancer, what inequalities exist, nor how families perceive hospice, especially in minorities. Dr. Johnston aims to better understand US pediatric hospice use with a focus on minorities. Her team will determine rates of and inequities in hospice use in children dying of cancer nationally and then interview families that had a child die of cancer and pediatric oncology and hospice teams to determine if the inequities are in line with child and family preferences. Early palliative care in adults leads to better quality of life and more hospice and home death. It is unknown if the same is true in children with cancer. Dr. Johnston and colleagues will offer early palliative care to children with brain tumors to determine if early palliative care is acceptable to families and providers and if a randomized control trial would be possible. After this project, she will be able to use information and skills gained to design a trial aimed at improving hospice access for those that desire hospice that builds on the lessons learned in this study. Researchers will then better understand hospice in children with cancer, necessary to ensure all children dying of cancer have high quality end of life care.

Leukemias are the most common cancer of childhood, and most often arise from cells of the B lymphocyte lineage (B cell precursor ALL, or B-ALL). While the prognosis for patients with standard-risk disease is good, the treatment of patients with relapsed or refractory B-ALL is difficult and thus new therapies are needed. Dr. Schuettpelz is studying the role of a cell-surface protein called CD53 in the regulation of malignant B cells. CD53 is more highly expressed on leukemia cells than on normal B cells, and has previously been shown to promote the survival of malignant cells. Using a model of B-ALL as well as human leukemia cells, she will test the effects of CD53 loss and gain on disease development and cell survival. Ultimately, she hopes that CD53 may be targeted therapeutically to treat patients with B-ALL.

This institution is a member of a research consortium which is being funded by St. Baldrick's: North American Consortium for Histiocytosis (NACHO). For a description of this project, see the consortium grant made to the lead institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

Malignant brain tumors are the most common cause of cancer-related death in children. The current standard of care treatment is often associated with lifelong cognitive and motor deficits and is almost inevitably followed by disease recurrence. Therapies that specifically and efficiently target tumor cells and minimize toxicity to normal cells are thus critical to the next generation of interventions that promise improved clinical outcomes for children affected by these deadly diseases. Capitalizing on our current knowledge of tumor metabolism and how metabolic pathways affect immune response, Dr. Deleyrolle is testing an innovative therapeutic modality based on reprograming the metabolic qualities of anti-tumor immune cells to enhance immunotherapy for childhood cancer. Successful completion of this project will demonstrate that immunometabolism represents a viable and critical target for the development of new cancer therapies to treat pediatric cancers, especially brain tumors. Dr. Deleyrolle is the recipient of the Pray for Dominic St. Baldrick's Research Grant. This grant is funded by the Pray for Dominic Hero Fund which was established in honor of an amazing boy who had so much joy and compassion for others even in a difficult battle with a rare and aggressive cancer. This fund carries on Dominic's legacy of joy and hope by funding research for high grade gliomas such as glioblastoma and DIPG for which there is no cure.

This grant is named for the Pray for Dominic Hero Fund. The fund was established in honor of Dominic Liples who lived with joy. He is remembered for compassion and determination while he faced his own difficult battle with a rare and aggressive brain cancer. The Pray for Dominic fund carries on Dominic's legacy of joy and hope by funding research for high-grade gliomas.