St. Baldrick’s Foundation Supports Next Generation of Childhood Cancer Researchers with $758,000 to Fund Fellowships

LOS ANGELES (March 14, 2022) – The St. Baldrick’s Foundation, the largest non-government funder of childhood cancer research grants, is proud to announce its newest round of grants. This funding will help support the next generation of childhood cancer researchers who will help to conquer kids’ cancers, with $758,000 awarded to support young researchers at five institutions across the U.S.

St. Baldrick’s Foundation Fellowship Awards support new pediatric oncology doctors for two to three years to conduct childhood cancer research while receiving advanced training under a mentor. This new investment of over $758,000 puts these young researchers on a solid path to finding new cures.

“The St. Baldrick’s Foundation has always been committed to making sure there is a pipeline of qualified investigators studying childhood cancer,” said Kathleen Ruddy, St. Baldrick’s Foundation CEO. “Fellowship awards are granted early in the career of new scientists, when support for their research is more difficult to garner. This funding gives young investigators the dedicated time, resources, and runway to pursue innovative ways to conquer childhood cancers.”

The following principal investigators will receive a St. Baldrick’s Fellowship grant:

• Anusha Anukanth, M.D. at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital, Cleveland, Ohio, is investigating a new type of immunotherapy to treat infant leukemia – a high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) subtype that occurs in children under one.
• Ruyan Rahnama, M.D. at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md., aims to better understand the biology of the site where CAR-modified NK (natural killer) cells and leukemia cells come together, known as the immunological synapse, to improve CAR-modified NK cell design for ultimate use as pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (AML) treatment.
• Betsy Young, M.D. at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital San Francisco, San Francisco, Calif., will identify factors that control the spread of osteosarcoma, to develop new therapies.

Based on progress over the past two years, the following St. Baldrick’s Fellows will receive an additional year of funds to continue their research:

• Shannon Conneely, M.D. at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, is exploring how a mutation in core binding factor (CBF) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) affects the cancer cells’ ability to grow.
• Zachary Reitman, M.D., Ph.D. at Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, N.C., is focused on enhancing the efficacy of radiation therapy to improve the survival of children with brainstem gliomas.

Since 2005, St. Baldrick’s has granted more than $314 million to support the development of childhood cancer treatments that have the potential to impact every kid diagnosed with cancer. The next round of St. Baldrick’s grants will be announced this summer.

To learn how you can get involved visit www.StBaldricks.org, and connect with St. Baldrick’s on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Vimeo. Check out our website to find a local event or consider making a donation.

About St. Baldrick’s Foundation

Every 2 minutes, a child somewhere in the world is diagnosed with cancer. In the U.S., 1 in 5 will not survive. The St. Baldrick’s Foundation, the largest non-government funder of childhood cancer research grants, is on a mission to give kids a lifetime by supporting the most promising research to find cures and better treatments for all childhood cancers. When you give to St. Baldrick’s, you don’t just give to one hospital – you support virtually every institution with the expertise to treat kids with cancer across the U.S. St. Baldrick’s ensures that children fighting cancer now — and those diagnosed in the future — will have access to the most cutting-edge treatment, by supporting every stage of research, from new ideas in the lab to the development of new therapies, to lifesaving clinical trials. Join us at StBaldricks.org and help #GiveKidsALifetime.

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