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Pediatric cancer is a gut punch most people can’t look at for long, and that discomfort has a cost. We sit down with Dr Dean Lee, Professor of Pediatrics at The Ohio State University and Nationwide Children’s Hospital, to talk about why kids’ cancer research is still massively underfunded and why community-driven giving is not a feel-good extra. It’s often the only way the next breakthrough gets its first chance.

We unpack the hard truth behind the pediatric cancer funding gap: fewer patients means fewer commercial incentives, and “trickle-down” solutions from adult oncology don’t always fit the diseases kids actually face. Dean explains why childhood cancer can be oddly invisible day to day, even though it remains a leading cause of death in children outside of accidents, and why foundations like Cancer Free Kids step in to fund the science that government grants won’t touch early on.

Then we get into hope with specifics. Dean walks us through what’s changing in cancer immunotherapy and cellular therapy, including why CAR T cell therapy was a game-changer in leukemias and lymphomas and why solid tumors have been so much harder. We also talk about what pilot grants really do, how a $50,000 award can create the preliminary data needed for major funding, and a real example involving CRISPR and natural killer cell research that grew into a much bigger research platform.

Join us for the third annual Little Legends Lemonade:

🍋 Sunday, August 2
🍋 11:00 AM–1:00 PM
🍋 Tupelo Honey on Lane Avenue
🍋 Goal: Raise $5,000 for CancerFreeKIDS

Donate, host a satellite stand, stop by for lemonade, or simply help us spread the word.

Every dollar helps put resources into the hands of brilliant people working to give kids their entire lives back.

Donate directly to the Little Legends Lemonade stand here:
https://cfk.donordrive.com/campaigns/Little-Legends-Lemonade

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And until next time… Keep Moving, baby!