PNOC FOUNDATION LAUNCHES $50 MILLION “LOSE NO CHILD” CAMPAIGN TO TRANSFORM THE FUTURE OF TREATMENT FOR KIDS WITH BRAIN CANCER

SAN FRANCISCO, CA (September 2, 2025) –  Launching today, the PNOC Foundation announced the  Lose No Child campaign, a $50 million campaign to accelerate progress against pediatric brain cancer, the leading cause of cancer death in children and young adults. The campaign seeks to achieve in just five years what typically takes a decade—bringing safer, more effective treatments to children worldwide.

It’s been a decade of breakthroughs for the Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Consortium (PNOC). The foundation helped to secure more than $25 million in funding, launching 30+ clinical trials, and enrolling over 1,000 children with rare and deadly brain cancers. These efforts contributed to two history-making FDA approvals for pediatric brain cancer treatments—an unprecedented milestone in a field where progress has historically lagged far behind other cancers. 

Brain tumors present unique and complex treatment challenges. There are many different types and subtypes of pediatric brain tumors, and the tumors are in an extraordinarily complex organ. Through dedication and innovation, PNOC’s 300+ collaborative researchers across 43 institutions worldwide, aim to redefine the pace of progress in the fight against the deadliest childhood cancers.

“In our first decade, PNOC proved that collaboration can move the needle in pediatric brain cancer. We now know that by working together we can bring new treatments to children faster than anyone thought possible,” said Dr. Michael Prados, Co-Founder of PNOC and UCSF Professor Emeritus.

The Lose No Child Campaign: Funding What’s Next

Building on its momentum, the PNOC Foundation is launching the Lose No Child campaign to fuel the next wave of progress. The campaign has already raised $12 million in a silent phase and will continue through 2028. Funds will be directed to three critical priorities:

• 50% – Clinical trial development and implementation: protocol development, strategies to integrate AI in protocol design and execution, patient recruitment, data collection, regulatory compliance, and trial execution. 

• 30% – Generating Access to Innovative Therapies: to ensure that patients have access to cutting-edge treatments as soon as they become available on a global level.

• 20% – Development of Predictive Biomarkers and Preclinical Rationale: identifying biomarkers that predict treatment response, optimizing early-stage research, and integrating AI-driven approaches to accelerate new therapy development.

“We have seen tremendous progress in some of the tumors we treat that gives me a lot of hope for the future. Progress is accelerating—a pace that would have been unimaginable a decade ago. This year we are opening exciting trials covering new therapeutic strategies like using repeated virus injection directly into tumors, modified natural killing cells, metabolic strategies targeting tumor cells as well as a new technology that uses heat to kill tumor cells. The Lose No Child campaign ensures we can sustain that momentum for the children and families who urgently need better treatment options,” said Dr. Sabine Mueller, PNOC Co-Founder and Project Lead, and UCSF Professor of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Pediatrics.

“The science is there. What’s been missing is the funding and infrastructure to match its urgency. Lose No Child is about closing that gap so children can benefit from advances as quickly as possible. We’re calling on parents, families, philanthropists and corporate America nationwide to join us in supporting this campaign to help us reach the Lose No Child campaign goal” said Bruce and Allyn Campbell, Co-Founders of the PNOC Foundation.

Join the Movement

Supporters are invited to learn more and join the campaign at www.losenochild.org.

About the PNOC Foundation:

The PNOC Foundation is a non-profit dedicated to supporting the advancements in childhood brain cancer research. The PNOC Foundation’s vision is to lose no child to brain cancer, and to improve the quality of life for those fighting and surviving pediatric brain cancer. The PNOC Foundation was founded to support the work of Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Consortium (PNOC), formed in 2012 at UCSF, to provide access to personalized treatment strategies and ultimately improve overall outcomes for children with brain cancer and tumors.

Since its inception, PNOC has pushed beyond older paradigms and historic trial designs, expanding nationally and globally to accelerate clinical trial completion and find cures faster. Through the cooperative open-source network, PNOC is fostering worldwide collaboration with the world’s leading pediatric brain tumor specialists. PNOC has grown from a 7-member group along the West Coast to a global consortium with 43 participating sites, funded largely by philanthropy.

Media Contact: Adam Eversole, Director of Development, PNOC Foundation adam@pnocfoundation.org  | 513 673-1170

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