Donations help drive neuroblastoma research
When you make a donation to St. Jude you are helping provide care for some of the world's sickest children, including those diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a cancer that forms in the nervous system.
St. Jude patient Josie
What is neuroblastoma?
Neuroblastoma is a type of cancer that grows from cells in the nervous system. It forms when healthy nervous system cells do not develop as they should. Instead, cancer cells called "neuroblasts" become stuck in an early stage of development. They do not become healthy, normal cells. The cancer cells begin to grow, and this causes a tumor to form.
How common is neuroblastoma?
- Neuroblastoma accounts for 7% to 10% of childhood cancers.
- Each year, 800 new cases are diagnosed in the United States.
- It occurs slightly more often in boys than in girls.
- Neuroblastoma accounts for 50% of all cancers in infants, making it the most common tumor in infants younger than 1 year.
- Most children with neuroblastoma are diagnosed before age 5.
- The number of cases of neuroblastoma is about the same worldwide, so environmental factors do not seem to play a role.
Your support helps kids and families like Josie's, picture here with her mom
How neuroblastoma research donations help support St. Jude
Our top priority is to provide patients with the best possible care, including facilitating research and collaboration across disciplines. St. Jude has been a leader in the management of children with neuroblastoma for a number of years. Some of our current research includes:
- Learn how the gene-editing technology CRISPR was used by St. Jude researchers to identify the DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (PRKDC) gene as a possible vulnerability in relapsed neuroblastoma.
- Discover how researchers at St. Jude are identifying targets and designing drugs to degrade proteins implicated in hard-to-treat cancers like leukemia and neuroblastoma.
- Explore our research findings surrounding our Phase II clinical trial and how the results suggest chemoimmunotherapy can dramatically improve survivability in high-risk patients.
How to make a neuroblastoma research donation
There are a few ways to donate to neuroblastoma research and treatments for this and other cancers and life-threatening diseases at St. Jude:
- Make a one-time donation online or via mail. You can also dedicate that donation to someone with a memorial gift.
- Become a St. Jude Partner in Hope when you commit to monthly gifts.
- Explore workplace giving methods, like seeing if your employer has a matching gift program.
- Consider leaving some of your assets to St. Jude with planned gifts through your will or bequest.
Background: image of neuroblastoma cells
Your help supports patients like Josie
Josie was diagnosed with neuroblastoma at the age of 3, in 2021. The primary tumor was on her adrenal gland, but she had cancer from her jaw all the way to her shins and in her bone marrow by the time it was discovered. Within two days, she was referred to St. Jude.
Josie’s treatment included chemotherapy, surgery, proton therapy, two autologous stem cell transplants and antibody therapy. She finished treatment in December 2022, and remains cancer free.
Her mom credits St. Jude with making a bad situation not only bearable, but positive. “St. Jude lets these kids still be kids while they’re fighting for their life. Their caregivers don’t have to think about anything but getting them better.”
St. Jude Patient Josie and her mom.
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