Our vision is simple: Cancer-free lives for all kids. 

Our mission is to provide direct funding for pediatric cancer research.

Our Mission

The Jeffrey Pride Foundation for Pediatric Cancer Research is an all-volunteer 501(c)3 founded in 2000 in memory of Jeffrey Pride, and in response to learning that pediatric cancer research is severely underfunded, receiving less than 4% of the National Cancer Institute’s(NCI) funding for cancer research.

The need for private funding like ours is more urgent than ever. Drug companies rarely fund pediatric cancer research in a significant way and government grants via NCI have been cut 30% over the last 10 years. At a point in time where there are so many promising ideas for research, funding is more limited than ever and life-saving research goes undone.

Important Facts to Remember About Pediatric Cancers:

*Cancer is the #1 disease killer of children in the United States, resulting in the death of more children than most other childhood diseases in combined.

*14,000 new cases of pediatric cancers are diagnosed each year (nearly 2 classrooms of children every day)

*1 in every 300 children will receive a cancer diagnosis by the age of 20

Over the past 23 years we've supported drug research, clinical trials and most recently genomic testing of children's cancer cells. This provides children with the most promising, targeted and specific treatments for their cancers. These new developments quite possibly could have changed Jeff's treatment and he and other children like him might have been healthy adults today.

Our Story

Our foundation is named after a brave little boy named Jeffrey Pride.  Jeff's short life was full of many loves. He loved his parents and sisters, his friends, his dog, school, hockey, NASCAR, video games, drawing, and building models. Jeff was a hard worker, and he fought hard in his two-year battle with leukemia.

Still, three days after his seventh birthday, Jeff died.

In the course of his battle, his parents came to realize how under funded cancer research was for children, even by the large foundations and societies that have become household names.   Surrounded by caring friends, the foundation was born with the aim of cancer-free lives for children becoming a reality.  To date,  JPF has donated close to 5 million dollars to the fight against Pediatric Cancer. 

Video from 2020 Virtual Gala

What We've Achieved

  • We have helped bring about a dozen new drugs to clinical trials. One of those drugs, Gleevec, has proven to be so successful that it is now being used as a frontline chemotherapy in high risk kids.

  • We have helped cover the actual financial costs for kids going through clinical trials, covering their administrative expenses, those not covered by their insurance.

  • We directed funds to be used to hire and pay a statistician to facilitate faster results reporting.

  • We helped support a large scale genomic study, the only one of it’s kind being done in the world at the time, looking at cancer from the molecular level, studying the DNA of cancer cell.

  • Utilizing the valuable information gained from that study we continued genetic testing looking at markers that help determine each child’s genetic risk level, allowing very specific targeted treatments to be developed that attack only the cancer cells and leave the rest of the body unharmed.

  • In more recent funding, we continued down the same path, supporting more genetic testing that looks at how much cancer remains after the first stage of chemotherapy, the induction phase. Once determined, very specific, targeted therapies could be developed.

WHAT WE are currently supporting

2019-2021 Grants to Children’s Oncology Group Research 

JEFFREY PRIDE FOUNDATION (JPF)

PROJECTS ONGOING IN 2021:

Project Title :  Project Every Child

This initiative is run by COG and aims to capture the biology and outcome of every child diagnosed with cancer in the United States and COG’s affiliated countries.  Scientists worldwide can use this biobank of well annotated biospecimens, located at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, is accessible to scientists around the world to find better cures for children with cancer.  


Project Title: Gene Research for Philadelphia chromosome positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (PH+ ALL)

This study will review the impact of the  IKZF1 gene found in PH+ ALL patients to predict relapse and use knowledge on future clinical trials on children, an understudied population.


Project Title:  Immunotherapy for B-cell acute leukemia

Many patients relapse because of immune suppression regimens.  This study is evaluating a new antibody drug conjugate for a new immunotherapy that controls cell survival in B-cell acute leukemia.  The next step will be to test the drug in a laboratory setting.


Project Title:  Phase 3 ALL Testing for minimal residual disease (MRD) levels  

Project Title:   Phase 3 ALL specialized laboratory costs 

After standard drug regimens show remission, this test looks for remaining leukemia cells, showing if chemotherapy needs to be prolonged, giving the patient a better chance to improve outcomes.  New lab methods are being developed to assess treatment responses.


Project Title:  Predicting Responses to JAK Inhibitor Therapy in Children with Ph-like ALL 

     Approximately 20% of children relapse despite best treatments, and nearly all of those die.  Based on previous studies, a new targeted drug called a JAK inhibitor can be used with chemotherapy for the first time in children with high-risk ALL.  This research will enhance understanding of how the JAK inhibitor works to kill all ALL cells in some and why treatment fails some patients.  Thus far, new networks within PH-like leukemia cells could possibly be targeted with new drugs and combination therapies in the future.


Projects completed in 2020:

Project Title:  Error-corrected DNA & RNA sequencing for detection of Minimal Residual Disease and Clonal Evolution in AML

      Childhood AML has a high prevalence of complex genetic mutation.  This study improved customized DNA and RNA error corrected sequencing assays to detect minimal residual disease (MRD) which can predict relapse.  This new methodology better informs the understanding of the evolution of AML and can advance customizable diagnostic testing in an environment that permits rapid integration of new therapies and new progress into treatment.

Projects completed in 2019:

Project Title:  Improving T Cell therapy for Childhood Post-Transplant 

    Epstein Barr Virus (EBV) is a common virus that generally causes a relatively mild illness in healthy people (mononucleosis), but for people with weakened immune systems (such as children following organ transplantations) EBV infected cells can grow uncontrollably into post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD).  This trial used reengineered donor T cell that specifically target EBV-infected cancer cells.  

Project Title:  Improving Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cells (CART) Therapy for Childhood ALL)

   CART-19 is a relatively new approach for treating children with Acute Lymphocyte Leukemia (ALL).  involving taking the immune cells of the patient and modifying them in the lab to restore their ability to kill cancer cells.  This study expanded on those prior, for patients relapsing into high risk ALL (after initial remission- weak T-Cells) and infants, who do not have enough viable T-cells.  This laid the foundation for a pilot clinical trial for collection of T cells from infants early.


Project Title:  Reducing Complications in children with Down Syndrome & Acute Leukemia

Children with Down Syndrome (DS) have a 20-fold increased risk of developing leukemia and complications of treatment are higher.  Immediate life-threatening infections during treatment are far more frequent for children with DS.  The research team used samples to genotype DNA of patient. This information is being used on a 2021 large-scale study with hopes to adjust treatment levels, provide families with invaluable information about expectations, and assist with implementing prevention and treatment strategies to minimize late effects.


Project Title:  Mapping and Therapeutic Targeting of the B-ALL Bone Marrow Microenvironment

Leukemia cells interface with healthy blood cell production and can turn bone marrow into a site that facilitates their survival at the expense of normal blood cells.  Leukemic bone marrow is believed to provide a refuge for B-ALL cells.  Investigators used technology to identify and track the behavior of thousands of individual bone marrow cells, giving clues as to how “rogue” cancer cell co-opt their surroundings and allow cancer cell survival, even with  chemotherapy.  Investigators mapped the ALL bone marrow microenvironment, to identify immune ‘monocytes’.  These can be targeted to improve survival.  This work was published in the publication Cancer Cell 2020.


OUTSIDE GRANT FACILITATED BY JPF:

Project Title:  Genetics informed combination therapy with ABT-199 against childhood Hypodiploid ALL

Hypodiploid B-cell leukemia currently has a 70% mortality rate.  This study focused on the synergistic effects of two drugs, ABT-199 (Venetoclax-induces cell growth suppression while sparing platelets) and Dinaciclib (A cdk inhibitor that suppresses neuroblastoma growth).  The study showed that this combination was effective in clearing leukemic blast cells from tissues analyzed. which has been an issue with ABT-199 monotherapy.  This will inform the opening of a clinical trial.