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7/20/2015
Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF), a nonprofit dedicated to finding better treatments and ultimately cures for all children with cancer, has awarded a 2015 Innovation Grant to Todd Waldman, MD, PhD, a professor of oncology at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.
The foundation says the two-year, $250,000 grant awarded to Waldman (as well as to 21 other U.S. scientists) is to pursue "unique projects," all in response to ALSF founder Alexandra "Alex" Scott's simple message: "All children want their tumors to go away."
Waldman will lead a research team studying Ewing sarcoma, an aggressive, sometimes lethal pediatric bone cancer. Though rare, it is the subject of much research because once the tumor recurs or spreads, it is difficult to treat successfully.
One of the most common genetic alterations in Ewing sarcoma is called STAG2. STAG2 is a gene whose role in cancer was first described by Waldman in 2011, and is among the most commonly mutated genes in human cancer. "The overall mission of our research is to understand how mutations in STAG2 cause Ewing sarcoma, and to identify ways to target this mutant gene with new therapies," explains Waldman.
