KCH awarded $2.5 million grant to support pediatric cancer research
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 13, 2025) — Kentucky Children’s Hospital (KCH) was awarded $2.5 million from the Kentucky Pediatric Cancer Research Trust Fund (KPCRF) to support research efforts around reducing the morbidity, mortality and long-term complications of pediatric cancer. The grant will be used to hire researchers who will develop and lead robust research programs that focus on pediatric oncology in areas that include cancer predisposition, cancer genetics, cancer prevention, tumor biology, diagnosis, treatment, psychosocial support, and survivorship.
“This grant will allow the University of Kentucky College of Medicine to push forward innovative treatments from the lab to the patient bedside,” said Chipper Griffith, III, M.D., dean of the UK College of Medicine. “With this support, we can fuel breakthroughs that bring hope and healing to families across Kentucky who are facing cancer.”
Previous grants funded the development of Project Inherited Cancer Risk, which evaluates patients for genetic predispositions that increase pediatric cancer risk. Through genetic testing, physicians can develop care plans to detect tumors early at a more treatable stage through personalized surveillance both for the child and for affected family members. In the four years since the project was launched, more than 250 patients have been sequenced and several examples of how discovering inherited cancer syndromes have been identified. The program has expanded to include Norton Children’s Hospital to make the project a state-wide effort.
“Kentucky is a national leader in providing support for children with cancer, and we are thrilled to be able to attract pediatric oncology researchers to the Commonwealth to reduce the burden of childhood cancer in our state,” said John D’Orazio, M.D., division chief of the division of pediatric oncology and hematology at KCH, who also serves as the vice chair of the KPCRF.
Recently, the DanceBlue Kentucky Children’s Hospital Hematology/Oncology Clinic and the Markey Cancer Foundation were awarded $500,000 for the Care Advancing Treatment Succession (CATS) Financial Assistance Fund for pediatric cancer patients and their families to assist housing and utility assistance, transportation assistance, medical equipment, nutritional supplements and an emergency fund for natural disasters based on social work-identified needs.
Kentucky ranks among the highest in pediatric cancer incidence rates in the country.
KCH serves as the subspecialty regional referral and pediatric care center for Central and Eastern Kentucky. The Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology accrues between 70 and 80 new oncology cases a year.
UK HealthCare is the hospitals and clinics of the University of Kentucky. But it is so much more. It is more than 10,000 dedicated health care professionals committed to providing advanced subspecialty care for the most critically injured and ill patients from the Commonwealth and beyond. It also is the home of the state’s only National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, a Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit that cares for the tiniest and sickest newborns and the region’s only Level 1 trauma center.
As an academic research institution, we are continuously pursuing the next generation of cures, treatments, protocols and policies. Our discoveries have the potential to change what’s medically possible within our lifetimes. Our educators and thought leaders are transforming the health care landscape as our six health professions colleges teach the next generation of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health care professionals, spreading the highest standards of care. UK HealthCare is the power of advanced medicine committed to creating a healthier Kentucky, now and for generations to come.