Provides $500,000 to help bank biospecimens for future research.

Philadelphia, PA (February 21, 2014) – Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF), a nonprofit dedicated to finding cures for all kids with cancer, is proud to announce that they are among the early funders of the Children’s Oncology Group’s (COG) Project:EveryChild. A key to discovery in childhood cancer research is the ability to link findings from the laboratory to information on each child’s cancer. Project:EveryChild will do just that, collecting biospecimens, including tumor and blood specimens, from children undergoing treatment for cancer, and distributing these to research laboratories around the world, helping lead the way to better treatments and cures for childhood cancers. ALSF has contributed $500,000 to the project, which will include infrastructure costs to acquire the biospecimens and integrate outcome data from children participating in Project:EveryChild into a database accessible to scientists everywhere.

Beginning with the front yard lemonade stand of cancer patient Alexandra “Alex” Scott, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation has been funding research to find cures for all childhood cancers since becoming an official 501(c)3 in 2005. The Foundation has an established grants program of its own, recognizing that Project:EveryChild will only further the possibilities of finding those sought after cures. The database that will be created through the banking of biospecimens will extend to more than 8,000 experts in childhood cancer at more than 200 leading children’s hospitals, universities and institutions across the country, many of whom are recipients of the Foundation’s grants.

“Investing in the Children’s Oncology Group’s Project:EveryChild is a win for the entire childhood cancer community,” said Jay Scott, Co-Executive Director of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. “Through the collection and banking of these biospecimens, the potential for new and groundbreaking research is unprecedented. The possibilities that these samples will give researchers are endless, and we are thrilled to be among the early funders.”

The investment of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation will be utilized for the collection of leukemia, solid tumor and Central Nervous System (CNS) tumor specimens. The ALSF funds will be used to obtain the biospecimen and any follow up data for the subjects, including for diseases that have no open therapeutic clinical trial. Additionally, a portion of the funding will be utilized for a programmer who is responsible for building the informatics support and addition to the database. This web-based interface will allow for scientists at COG institutions to query type and availability of specimens.

“This is an exciting frontier in the world of childhood cancer research,” said Liz Scott, Co-Executive Director of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. “The creation of this database of biospecimens will be integral to finding breakthroughs in childhood cancer research, opening doors for research both now and in the future.”

For more information on Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation and recently funded projects, visit: www.ALSFgrants.org.

 

About Childhood Cancer

Childhood cancer is a general term used to describe cancer in children occurring regularly, randomly and sparing no ethnic group, socioeconomic class, or geographic region. Childhood cancer extends to over a dozen types of cancers and a countless amount of subtypes. Just a few of these cancer types include: Ewing’s sarcoma, glioma, leukemia, lymphoma, medulloblastoma, neuroblastoma, osteosarcoma, retinoblastoma, rhabdomyosarcoma and Wilm’s tumor. In the United States, childhood cancer is the leading cause of death by disease in children under the age of 15. Every day, approximately 250 kids around the world die from cancer, accounting for 91,250 losing their lives to the disease every year.

 

About Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation
Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) emerged from the front yard lemonade stand of cancer patient Alexandra “Alex” Scott (1996-2004). In 2000, 4-year-old Alex announced that she wanted to hold a lemonade stand to raise money to help find a cure for all children with cancer. Since Alex held that first stand, the Foundation bearing her name has evolved into a national fundraising movement, complete with thousands of supporters across the country carrying on her legacy of hope. To date, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, a registered 501(c)3 charity, has raised more than $75 million toward fulfilling Alex’s dream of finding a cure, funding over 375 pediatric cancer research projects nationally. For more information on Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, visit AlexsLemonade.org.

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