St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital estimates that about 400,000 children worldwide will receive a cancer diagnosis this year. In the U.S., advances in research and treatments have enhanced survival rates, with 80% of children living five years or more following treatment. However, significant efforts are ongoing to improve these rates further and find cures for rarer cancer types.

“Kids with brain tumors were left behind. Because the treatments are very old, they are from the 80s, believe it or not,” Fernando Goldsztein said.

Fernando’s son, Frederico, was diagnosed with a brain tumor at the age of nine. Medulloblastoma, the most common brain tumor in children, remains rare, with only five in every million children diagnosed annually. This rarity has posed challenges in securing funds for new research.

“Unfortunately, he relapsed,” Fernando shared. “Doctors at the time told me there was nothing that could be done to save my son, advising me to return home and spend time with him.”

Backed by MBI, a clinical trial is underway in which scientists are modifying patients’ white blood cells to identify and eliminate tumor cells. The outcomes have been encouraging, with one participant experiencing near eradication of their cancer.

At the University of Florida, scientists are conducting a separate study on mice, exploring an experimental mRNA-based cancer vaccine. This research may pave the way for a universal vaccine that could stimulate a patient’s immune response against cancer.

Scientists in one MBI-funded clinical trial are programming white blood cells to seek out and destroy cancer cells. (iStock)

MBI ensures that 100% of the donations it receives are directed toward supporting research and clinical trials for children like Frederico. According to Fernando, his son is doing well as a result of the groundbreaking research being undertaken.

“He is an outlier, but we know that this type of tumor comes back, so it’s running against time. And that’s why we are moving fast to save him and to save thousands of other kids out there,” Fernando said.

You can learn more or donate to the Medulloblastoma Initiative at