Supporting Phase I or II clinical trials
Our Catapult Awards accelerate proven research out of the lab and into the clinic where it reaches the pediatric patients who urgently need new treatments. These awards uniquely fund cutting-edge clinical trials that begin enrolling patients in less than a year.
What is a clinical trial?
Clinical trials are human research studies that test new drugs or treatments in a lab environment to compare their impact to current, standard treatments. Human testing only occurs if pre-clinical research findings indicate the treatment is effective and safe. Clinical trials are standard practice in cancer treatment for children, adolescents and young adults. About 60% of children with cancer are enrolled in a trial, as opposed to less than 5% of adult patients.
Active Catapult Projects
Mohamed S. Abdelbaki, MD
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis
Focus: Recurrent Brain Tumors; Natural Killer (NK) Cell Therapy
David Munn, MD
Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University
Focus: Pediatric brain tumors
Elias Sayour, MD, PhD
University of Florida
Focus: Pediatric high-grade glioma
Completed Catapult Projects
Ranjit Bindra, MD, PhD
Focus: Pediatric Glioma
Crystal Mackall, MD
Focus: CAR T-cell therapy for pediatric DIPG