Medical student Scott Connors will continue his investigations into recurrent pediatric ependymoma in Dr. Jeffrey Greenfield’s lab this summer, funded by a fellowship grant from the St. Baldrick’s Foundation. St. Baldrick’s, a longtime supporter of the Weill Cornell Children’s Brain Tumor Project, awarded the grant for research into the genomics and epigenomics of ependymoma.
Much like diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) and gliomatosis cerebri, ependymomas — which arise from ependymal cells that line the ventricles of the brain — are rare brain tumors that have been poorly studied to date compared with other pediatric cancers. Thanks to an outpouring of support from the family and friends of a New Jersey child who passed away in 2014 from an ependymoma, the CBTP has been able to expand seminal studies specific to understanding why recurrent ependymoma is so difficult to cure. The St. Baldrick’s grant will allow us to redouble our efforts on that research and lay the groundwork for future investigations and potential clinical trials.
Find out more about Pediatric Neuro-oncology Research at Weill Cornell
Find out more about the Children’s Brain Tumor Project
