Hyundai Hope on Wheels Funds Two Pediatric AML Research Programs Targeting Relapse and Treatment Resistance
核心洞察
Hyundai Hope on Wheels (搜索) awarded a $400,000 2026 Scholar Hope Grant to Penn State College of Medicine (搜索) for a two-drug approach to pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (搜索).
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center received a $100,000 Hyundai Impact Award Grant to advance CAR T-cell therapy for relapsed or treatment-resistant pediatric AML.
The grants target pediatric AML, an aggressive childhood cancer with high relapse and death risk and limited options for relapsed disease.
Hyundai Hope on Wheels (搜索) has awarded two new pediatric cancer research grants aimed at acute myeloid leukemia (搜索) (AML), an aggressive childhood cancer with a high risk of relapse and death. A $400,000 2026 Scholar Hope Grant will fund a two-drug treatment approach at Penn State College of Medicine (搜索), while a $100,000 Hyundai Impact Award Grant will support CAR T-cell research at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Two-Drug Strategy at Penn State
The 2026 Scholar Hope Grant was awarded to Sinisa Dovat, professor and vice chair for basic science research in the Department of Pediatrics and Four Diamonds researcher at Penn State College of Medicine (搜索). The funding will support research testing a two-drug treatment approach for pediatric AML, with the goal of identifying new treatment strategies that could improve outcomes for children diagnosed with the disease.
The grant was presented Sept. 15 during a ceremony at Penn State Health Golisano Children's Hospital, where Dovat received a commemorative lab coat recognizing him as a 2026 Hyundai Hope on Wheels (搜索) Scholar Hope Grant recipient. The Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at Golisano Children's Hospital also received a $100,000 Hyundai Hope on Wheels Impact Award to support pediatric cancer research and care.
Following the ceremony, young patients and their families took part in Hyundai Hope on Wheels (搜索)' signature Handprint Ceremony, placing painted handprints on Dovat's lab coat and a Hyundai vehicle. Since 2006, Hyundai Hope on Wheels has awarded $2.8 million in grants to Four Diamonds at Golisano Children's Hospital.
CAR T-Cell Program at Roswell Park
In Buffalo, New York, the $100,000 Hyundai Impact Award Grant was presented to David Byrwa, MD, of the Department of Pediatric Oncology at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center. The grant supports research into CAR T-cell therapy for children with relapsed or treatment-resistant AML and is intended to advance development of a promising new therapy for children with limited treatment options.
"Our goal is to bring promising discoveries from the laboratory to the children who need them most. This grant allows us to take an important step toward evaluating a new CAR T-cell therapy that has the potential to improve outcomes for pediatric AML patients," Byrwa said. "Support like this from Hyundai Hope on Wheels (搜索) makes it possible to move innovative ideas into clinical trials. We're hopeful this research will lead to safer, more effective treatments for children facing relapsed or treatment-resistant AML."
The award brings Hyundai Hope on Wheels (搜索) to $1 million in lifetime giving to Roswell Park. "This milestone is a powerful reminder that meaningful progress in pediatric cancer research is built in part through sustained partnerships," said Kara Kelly, chair of the Department of Pediatric Oncology at Roswell Park. "Hyundai Hope on Wheels' continued investment enables us to ask bigger questions, pursue innovative therapies and, ultimately, give more children the opportunity to live longer, healthier lives."
At the presentation, 14-year-old Kienen Duggan, a pediatric patient at Roswell Park, shared her cancer story. Diagnosed with AML last August, she underwent chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant with her sister as donor. She has been declared cancer free and rang the Victory Bell at Roswell Park on April 24.
A Sustained Funding Pipeline
Hyundai Hope on Wheels (搜索), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by Hyundai Motor America (搜索) and its U.S. dealers, has funded pediatric cancer research since 1998. This year, the organization is expected to reach $303 million in lifetime donations supporting more than 1,500 childhood cancer research grants at more than 175 hospitals and research institutions nationwide. In 2025, it awarded over $27 million in pediatric cancer research grants to hospitals throughout the United States.
"Advancing pediatric cancer research requires bold science and sustained commitment," said John Guastaferro, executive director of Hyundai Hope on Wheels (搜索). "We are deeply grateful to Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and its doctors and researchers whose dedication drives progress to the children and families who need it most."