CAC2 Childhood Cancer Community News Digest (March 28-April 10)

Assorted News from Last Week:

The Coalition Against Childhood Cancer is pleased to announce the 2022 Annual Summit hosted by Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and presented by Day One Biopharmaceuticals.  This annual event reflects the CAC2 values and mission by providing top-notch educational programming, designing multiple opportunities for members to connect and engage, and showcasing the ongoing work of our members who are working for a future without childhood cancers.

The Research to Accelerate Cures and Equity (RACE) Act led to an increase in required pediatric studies for recently approved cancer therapies within the first year of the act’s implementation, according to study results.

Sadhana Jackson is a pediatric neuro-oncologist writes that historically, the lack of diverse identities among recognized luminaries at the NIH is attributed to factors based on structural racism, including discriminatory policies and practices; selection and recruitment biases; a failure of early exposure to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education to foster career matriculation and advancement; and inadequate acknowledgement of contributions from underrepresented staff.

“To transplant, or not to transplant? That is the question. A patient advocate evaluation of autologous stem cell transplant in neuroblastoma” — see free fulltext: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/pbc.29663

Matt Yglesias writes:  We have a new, faster way to test Covid-19 treatments — why doesn’t the NIH use it? (May be gated).

Upcoming Webinars, Online Opportunities, and Meetings:

Join the conversation on Twitter about cancer patient advocacy during our YouTube Live broadcast of a survivorship panel discussion at AACR22 on Tuesday, April 12 at 6:30 pm CT. Moderated by STAT’s Angus Chen. https://bit.ly/3JkFkMU

You’re invited to join the Alliance for Childhood Cancer for the 11th Annual Childhood Cancer Action Days. This virtual event brings our community together to advocate for important childhood cancer issues currently before Congress.  Training will be virtually held on Thursday, April 21st at 1 p.m. EST in preparation for the virtual Action Day on Thursday, April 28th.  Register to participate: https://www.allianceforchildhoodcancer.org/join-us/action-days-2022.html.

On May 11 at 2:00-4:00 ET, join the NIH Common Fund for another public webinar.  Register to hear updates from the Gabriella Miller Kids First Pediatric Research Program (Kids First), as well as latest research findings from Kids First investigators. The Kids First Data Resource Center (Kids First DRC) will also be on hand to present updates on the latest analysis tools and resources in development within the Data Resource.

The 20^th International Symposium on Pediatric Neuro-Oncology, ISPNO 2022 from 12 – 15 June 2022, and the Annual Meeting of the Brain Tumor Group of SIOP Europe (SIOPE-BTG) in Hamburg, Germany, from 11 – 12 June 2022.  Registration link.

Take Action:

The following Action Opportunities are sponsored by Childhood Cancer International (CCI) to aid children with cancer and their families in the Ukraine.  CAC2 is a member of CCI.

The campaign to support Ukrainian families is called the Ukrainian Childhood Cancer Emergency Fund.  All funds will be centralised on CCI Europe’s bank account and spent following a strict and transparent workframe including regular reports.

In an effort to better support families, Ryan’s Case for Smiles is seeking caregivers to participate in a 1 hour recorded Zoom session while navigating through our site CopingSpace.org. They can be any member of the family who cares for the child (Father/Mother/Grandparent/Aunt etc) and will receive a $25 Amazon gift card for their participation. We are also collecting shorter online surveys at https://copingspace.org/survey/.  Email Katie at  for more information and to participate.

The EVAN Foundation (CAC2 Member) is proud to announce the launch of the Evan Lindberg and Erik Ludwinski College Scholarship Program for Childhood Cancer Survivors. HS seniors can apply for awards of $2,500 a year, renewable annually for 4 years of undergraduate coursework. Applications accepted from March 15th – May 1st. Two scholarships will be awarded in 2022 with winners announced July 1st.  Click for more information and to apply.