Interesting facts about St. Jude

We were built on a promise

More than 70 years ago, Danny Thomas was a young father and entertainer who was having a tough time finding work. He turned to St. Jude Thaddeus, the patron saint of hopeless causes, and vowed: “Show me my way in life, and I will build you a shrine.”

After achieving fame, he fulfilled his vow by founding St. Jude in 1962, which has since transformed countless lives.

Learn About Our History

We’re more than cancer care

St. Jude is best known for treating pediatric cancer, but we also research and treat many other catastrophic childhood diseases, including certain blood disorders, immune disorders, infectious diseases and other diseases and syndromes.

Some things you may not know:

We have several labs dedicated to finding cures for blood disorders, including pioneering gene therapy research.
Our pediatric sickle cell disease treatment program is one of the largest in the United States.
We’re home to the Pediatric Transitional Neuroscience Initiative, which helps address the unmet needs of children with certain neurological disorders.

Learn What Diseases We Treat

We support our patients beyond their illness

Our healthcare staff puts families at the center of their child's care, because we know how critical a family's support is for a child's recovery. And families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food — so they can focus on helping their child live.

Some ways we support our patients and their families:

The Child Life Program: A diagnosis of a new illness is stressful for a family. The Child Life Program helps reduce stress and anxiety for patients and their family.
The Domino’s Village offers short- and long-term lodging for patients and families at St. Jude. This facility is a comfortable and soothing space with everything a family needs to feel at home.
Cancer Control & Survivorship Program: Childhood cancer survivors have unique health needs. Our St. Jude care team works with families' local care providers to help patients stay healthy.

Learn About Care and Treatment at St. Jude

We're global

There is one St. Jude campus in Memphis, Tennessee. But even if our location isn’t near you, our research is. In 2018, the World Health Organization named St. Jude its first and only Collaborating Centre for Childhood Cancer. With this designation, we support efforts to improve detection and treatment of childhood cancer around the globe.

Also in 2018, we launched St. Jude Global to improve the survival rates of children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases, worldwide, through the sharing of knowledge, technology and organizational skills.

We won't stop until no child — anywhere — dies from cancer.

See More About Our Global Impact

We’ve advanced the science of pediatric care

St. Jude is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Cures for many childhood diseases had their origins in St. Jude clinics and labs.

Some highlights:

In 1965, St. Jude initiated the Total Therapy approach to acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) treatment — an approach that still forms the backbone of ALL treatments today.
In 1983, a St. Jude patient was the first in the world to be cured of sickle cell disease through a stem cell (bone marrow) transplant.
In 2019, investigators at St. Jude and UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital San Francisco used a novel gene therapy and chemotherapy treatment to cure infants with SCID-X1, sometimes called “bubble boy disease.”

See a Timeline of St. Jude Milestones

St. Jude patient Hudson plays with toys in a cheerful playroom with St. Jude. — St. Jude patient **Hudson**

We're funded by donors

Unlike other hospitals, the majority of funding for St. Jude comes from generous donors.

American Lebanese Syrian Associated Charities (ALSAC) was founded by Danny Thomas in 1957 to be the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude. ALSAC’s sole mission is to raise the funds and awareness necessary to operate and maintain the hospital.

In the years ahead, an estimated 89% of the funds necessary to sustain and grow St. Jude must be raised by ALSAC from generous donors. That means you have the chance to be part of our future – your donation is vital to our success as we seek to find cures for kids with cancer and other life-threatening diseases.

Discover Ways to Support St. Jude

Your support helps kids like Vietnam

In March 2016, Vietnam began throwing up and running a high fever. His parents took him to the emergency room near their home in Texas where he had two seizures. He was in a coma for four days. “He was just 6 years old, in first grade, when he had that. It was so scary. We thought that we’d lost him,” said his dad.

But Vietnam regained consciousness, and a CT scan revealed that he had a brain tumor. Later, he was was referred to St. Jude, where he had surgery and radiation treatment.

Seven years later, in 2023, his cancer came back. Vietnam had surgery and was in treatment for several weeks. He’s now 15 and in the 10th grade. He spends his spare time playing video games online and loves physics and aquatic science classes.

Make a difference in the lives of St. Jude kids

Because of your support, we can provide children with cutting-edge treatments not covered by insurance, at no cost to families. Join us, and be part of our mission to save more lives.

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6 things you probably didn’t know about St. Jude