Our Mission

Vision

To live in a world where pediatric brain tumors do not define a child’s life.

To eradicate pediatric brain tumors by supporting the world’s most promising, collaborative research.

The Kortney Rose Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds to support cutting-edge research into the causes and treatment of pediatric brain tumors.

• More children die of brain tumors than any other form of cancer.
• In the U.S., more than 28,000 children and teenagers are currently living with the diagnosis of a primary brain tumor.
• Seventy two percent of those kids are under age 15.
• Annually, there are upwards of 4,800 kids diagnosed with a primary brain or central nervous system tumor, which equates to 13 new cases per day.
• Among cancer deaths, brain and central nervous system tumors cause the greatest proportion of years of potential life lost (31%).
• There are more than 100 different types of brain tumors, making diagnosis and treatment challenging.
• While survival rates for many childhood brain tumors have improved over the past 30 years, survivors often suffer from lifelong side effects caused by their illness as well as their treatments. (Source: Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, January 2016)

The National Cancer Institute (NCI), a federal agency under the National Institutes of Health (NIH) umbrella, allocates less than four percent of its annual $5 billion budget ($178 million) to all forms of pediatric cancer. In 2017, Congress passed the 21st Century Cures Act, authorizing $1.8 billion in funding for the Cancer Moonshot initiative over seven years. Before 2017, the nation’s investment in overall cancer research experienced a prolonged hiatus in significant financial growth. Despite the opportunity for new funding through Cancer Moonshot, the increased cost of research and the constant dollar loss of funding due to inflation continues to impact the NCI budget and subsequently, the pace of investment in all cancer research. (NCI Office of Budget and Finance, cancer.gov, 2018)

Meanwhile, pharmaceutical companies fund only a fraction of a percent of childhood cancer research. They see little financial incentive for investment in such a small patient population. Since 1980, fewer than ten drugs have been developed for use in children with cancer, only four of which have been approved for use. (National Pediatric Cancer Foundation)

Small foundations like the Kortney Rose Foundation (KRF) are left to bridge this substantial funding gap.