By: Trish Adkins
What does it take to cure childhood cancer? For the 24 new Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation Young Investigator grantees, the answer lies in pursuing innovative approaches to the pressing questions that could unlock new possibilities for kids with cancer.
This year, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) is supporting these early-career researchers as they pursue bold ideas that could lead to new ways of understanding, diagnosing, and treating childhood cancer. Through the 2026 Young Investigator Grants, ALSF is investing in scientists at a pivotal stage in their careers—when a promising idea can become an independent research program and, ultimately, a discovery that changes what’s possible for children with cancer.
This year’s newly funded projects bring fresh perspectives and unconventional approaches to childhood cancer research. They address treatment inequities, harness emerging technologies, investigate serious treatment-related side effects, and tackle some of the deadliest childhood cancers.
“Receiving this award feels like a green light to pursue an unconventional approach to childhood cancer,” said Dr. Rosa Vincent, an ALSF grantee who is engineering helpful bacteria to live inside solid tumors and provide more fuel to engineered T cells so they can fight cancer cells.
“Having my work recognized and supported by ALSF has helped pull my research out of the abstract world of cells in a dish and toward the children and families we ultimately hope it will benefit,” said Dr. Vincent.
For early-career scientists, Young Investigator Grant funding provides something just as valuable as research dollars: protected time to expand their work, test new ideas, and build independent research programs.
“Because exposure to extreme heat is shaped by longstanding inequities in housing, urban planning, and environmental policy, this research seeks to understand how these factors contribute to treatment-related complications and disparities in outcomes,” explained Dr. Boulter.
Dr. Julie Boiko is studying graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), a serious and sometimes deadly complication of stem cell transplants. She is using her funding to take a genomic deep dive into the biology of GVHD, with the goal of better understanding what causes its most severe forms.
“I am excited to get to uncover the causes of morbid forms of graft-versus-host disease and learn how we can more efficiently and effectively treat it,” said Dr. Boiko.
Brain tumors are the deadliest form of childhood cancer, and many critical questions about these cancers remain unanswered.
Dr. Tristen Wright is pursuing one of those questions in ependymoma, a type of pediatric brain tumor. He will study how the major drivers of ependymoma development work and whether this new understanding could reveal vulnerabilities that might ultimately become targets for more effective treatments.
“The ALSF Young Investigator Grant represents far more than research funding—it provides the opportunity to launch my independent laboratory and dedicate my career to developing better treatments for children with brain tumors. Knowing that this work is made possible by the generosity of ALSF supporters is both motivating and humbling, and I am grateful for the opportunity to help improve the lives of children and families affected by pediatric cancer,” said Dr. Wright.
Another funded researcher, Dr. Julia Carrillo-García, is examining how external stress on the developing brain—including injury or increased pressure inside the skull—can alter the behavior of cells and contribute to tumor development.
“Receiving this grant is incredibly meaningful to me, both scientifically and at this stage of my career. It gives me the opportunity to explore ideas that I hope will help us better understand previously overlooked factors that may contribute to childhood brain tumors,” said Dr. Carrillo-García.
ALSF Young Investigators gain more-than-valuable funding for their research. They also become part of a robust research community through ALSF. Each year, Young Investigator grantees and alumni come together to discuss their projects, collaborate, and problem-solve—continuing to connect around some of the most pressing challenges in childhood cancer research.
Funding childhood cancer research has never been more important. Breakthroughs often emerge from bold, unconventional approaches, but those ideas need funding to become discoveries.
By supporting early-career investigators, ALSF helps spark creativity, bring fresh perspectives to the field, and give the next generation of researchers the opportunity to pursue the urgent goal at the heart of all this work: curing childhood cancer.
Below, meet the newest group of Young Investigator Grantees and explore the innovative projects they’re launching.
