Oncology Research

Integrated translational bench-to-bedside research is the centerpiece of the cancer program at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. To capitalize on 21st century innovations in cancer research, we have prioritized alignment of our laboratory research programs with our clinical research enterprise. Our primary objective is to speed the development of new drugs and therapies for children with cancer.  Our research programs focus on key cancer mechanisms and treatment pathways, with close integration of each of our major childhood tumor translational programs. 

Our priority research areas are:

1. Cancer and leukemia biology research, with integrated new drug and molecular therapies discovery focused on pediatric malignancies
2. Personalized cancer therapy approaches using tumor molecular signatures and individualized patient pharmacogenomics
3. New gene, viral and cellular therapies
4. Molecular genetics and prevention research to improve outcomes in childhood cancer survivors

In addition to clinical research involving new cancer and transplant therapies, our biology and specimen procurement protocols have provided important leads to guide our research.  These priorities guide a broad portfolio of investigator-initiated clinical studies here at Cincinnati Children’s, many of which are the direct extension of basic science research carried out at our institution.

Cincinnati Children’s faculty also developed and lead national clinical trials of novel therapies and transplant approaches.  For more than 50 years, the culture of pediatric oncology has been one of many progressive advances in outcomes through productive national collaborations (e.g., the National Cancer Institute-funded Children’s Oncology Group), and this is a tradition in which we are proud to participate and contribute.

New Translational Research and Therapies

Learn more about the innovative research of the Division of Oncology:

• Brain Tumor Center
• Cancer Survivorship Center
• Kidney Tumors
• Leukemia and Lymphoma
• Liver Tumors
• Neuroblastoma
• Neurofibromatosis Tumors
• Retinoblastoma
• Sarcoma 

The Division of Oncology is part of the Cancer and Blood Diseases Institute. The institute also includes the Divisions of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Immune Deficiency, Experimental Hematology and Cancer Biology and Hematology. 

The director of the Division of Oncology is John Perentesis, MD, FAAP. Perentesis is a nationally recognized expert in the development of new therapies for pediatric cancers, leading new clinical trials through the Children’s Oncology Group, the NCI Phase I/Pilot Consortium, and the Department of Defense-funded Neurofibromatosis Consortium.