Cancer Research

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Patients at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland benefit from the scientific and clinical resources of our affiliations with national and regional clinical trial networks. As a member of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), the largest cooperative pediatric clinical trials group in the United States, our patients have access to national pediatric cancer research and clinical trials. UCSF is one of the nation’s top 10 pediatric research centers in terms of National Institutes of Health grant funding. Our team actively participates in discovering improvements in cancer treatment and we can bring these innovations to your child to achieve long-term survival and improve the quality of life for hundreds of children with cancer.

Why Families Choose Us

Clinical Trials for Pediatric Cancer Patients in Northern California

• Clinical Research Studies
• We're a member of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), the largest cooperative pediatric clinical trials group in the United States, meaning our clinicians and scientists conduct clinical research trials that aim to improve long-term outcomes for all children with malignant tumors.
• By participating in the COG on a national level, our research groups have helped in international efforts that have dramatically increased pediatric cancer survival rates to over 70 percent.
• Children’s is one of approximately 40 centers worldwide participating in the Head Start Consortium for Pediatric Brain Tumors, which focuses on improving the cure rate and quality of survival for the youngest children with tumors.

Early Phase/Novel Therapeutics Oncology Program

• This program provides local access to early phase I/II trials for the treatment of relapsed and refractory pediatric cancers. This includes access to new and experimental promising drugs and treatments to children and adolescents with the most complex and difficult to treat cancers.
  
• In addition to treatment protocols, we have early phase trials in supportive care, drug metabolism and novel methods for tumor surveillance for earlier and less invasive detection.

Bridging the Gap between Research Science and Practical Medicine

• The Center for Cancer Research (CCR) brings together basic science and clinical research in the treatment of various cancers. Our goal is to create meaningful advances in the prevention, diagnosis, and therapy of pediatric malignancies.
• Because we oversee both our medical research facility and our children’s hospital, we’re able to foster invaluable collaboration between scientists and doctors. By adopting this "bench-to-bedside" approach, we can get the right medicine into the hands of your child’s physicians that much faster.

Training Tomorrow’s Leaders

• Most breakthroughs in pediatric cancer care are built on years of experimental treatments and research. This requires a large time commitment from our team, but it's a commitment we're proud and happy to follow through on every day.
• The Hematology and Oncology fellowship program at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland accepts up to two fellows per year. Applicants are accepted based on their potential to become successful academic clinicians and researchers as part of our growing team.