Stanford/Packard Children’s Hospital Land $6.9 Million Grant

Children who have successfully undergone organ transplants are sometimes stricken by a cancer that develops as a result of immune-suppressing medications the children take to prevent rejection of their organs.

The National Institutes of Health is providing $6.9 million for scientists at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital and the Stanford University School of Medicine to conduct a study aimed at prediction and early detection of the cancer, called post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder. It’s a malignancy of the white blood cells.

The cancer’s mortality rate can be as high as 35 percent. About 150 children develop the cancer each year in the U.S., and many more are at risk.

 “Our study is unique in that it is bringing to bear Stanford's incredible expertise in the basic sciences of immunology, virology and cancer all together to try to answer a critical clinical question that disproportionately affects children,” said Stanford/Packard Children’s pediatric cardiologist Daniel Bernstein, MD, who co-directs the project.

The study will include pediatric organ transplant recipients from Packard Children’s and four other study sites: the University of California-Los Angeles, the University of Texas-Southwestern, the University of Nebraska and the University of Miami.

Also on Palo Alto Patch

Map: Average Commute Time in Palo Alto? It's 21 Minutes

Ex-Googler Starts Site for Part-time Job Seekers

Palo Alto Startup Acquired by TripAdvisor