Hyundai Hope On Wheels Announces Four $1 Million Quantum Grant Winners

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Hyundai Hope On Wheels® (HHOW), the non-profit organization of Hyundai Motor America, announced the winners of its largest pediatric cancer research grant to date, a new $1 million grant category entitled the Hyundai Quantum Grant. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Fred Hutchison Cancer Research Center and the University of Florida were the four winning Children's Oncology Group (COG) institutions to receive this $1 million grant. Each winning institution will receive $250,000 per year, for four years, to address pediatric cancers with the lowest survival rates. 

"This year we celebrate our 18^th year in this arduous fight to end pediatric cancer.  We have established ourselves as one of the leading funders of childhood cancer research because we are serious about our mission to improve the survival rates of children diagnosed with this disease," said Scott Stark, Hope On Wheels Board Chairman and Managing Partner of South Point Hyundai in Texas. "In an effort to make an even greater impact in the field, we launched the Hyundai Quantum Grant to support transformational research on cancers with low survival rates. One more child dying of cancer is one too many. This is a fight we're on a mission to win."

$1 Million Hyundai Quantum Grant Winners:

• The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (Philadelphia, PA) – Richard Aplenc, MD, PhD, MSCE
• Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (Boston, MA) – Loren D. Walensky, MD, PhD
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Seattle, WA) – Soheil Meshinchi, MD, PhD and Marie Bleakley, MD, PhD
• University of Florida (Gainesville, FL) – Duane A. Mitchell, MD, PhD

The winning proposals focus on some of the most high-risk childhood cancers, including Myeloid Leukemia and Medulloblastoma tumors.  With this grant, Dr. Duane A. Mitchell, from the University of Florida, aims to advance a novel immunotherapy for the treatment of high-risk molecular subtypes of medulloblastoma tumors. Dr. Soheil Meshinchi and Dr. Marie Bleakley, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, are proposing to generate target-specific T cells that will be isolated in high-throughput screens and employed to obtain AML-specific TCRs with which to develop novel T cell immunotherapies. Dr. Loren D. Walensky, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, is seeking to advance a new therapeutic strategy for pediatric AML based on reactivating one of the most potent tumor suppressor proteins in all of human cancer. Dr. Richard Aplenc, of The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, aims to improve immune therapies for children with AML.

More than 180 COG member institutions were invited to submit a one-page letter of intent detailing the hypothesis, aims and goal of their proposed research project, as well as identifying which high-risk childhood cancers their research was targeting.  Hyundai Hope On Wheels' Medical Advisory Committee selected 10 applicants who had two months to prepare and submit a formal 12-page proposal.  In the final review process, four institutions were selected to receive the Hyundai Quantum Grant.

"It's an honor to be part of an organization that is so devoted to a cause as noble as saving the lives of children who are battling cancer," said Dr. Leonard Sender, member of the Hyundai Hope On Wheels Medical Advisory Committee. "After 18 years, it's heart-warming to see our Hyundai Hope On Wheels grants program evolve into an industry-recognized major funding source, especially since we are operating in an environment where only less than four percent of federal funding goes to pediatric cancer. The addition of the Hyundai Quantum Grant will certainly be a tremendous help to pediatric cancer researchers who are working tirelessly to find a cure, and put an end to this disease once and for all."

For more information about Hyundai Hope On Wheels and to view a list of our Hope On Wheels grant winners, please visit www.hyundaihopeonwheels.org/research.  You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram at Facebook.com/HyundaiHopeOnWheels, Twitter.com/HopeOnWheels or Instagram.com/HyundaiHopeOnWheels. 

HYUNDAI HOPE ON WHEELS

Hyundai Hope On Wheels® is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that is committed to finding a cure for childhood cancer.  Launched in 1998, Hyundai Hope On Wheels provides grants to eligible institutions nationwide that are pursuing life-saving research and innovative treatments for the disease.  Primary funding for Hyundai Hope On Wheels comes from Hyundai Motor America and its more than 830 U.S. dealers.  Hyundai Hope On Wheels has awarded more than $100 million towards childhood cancer research in pursuit of a cure.

HYUNDAI MOTOR AMERICA

Hyundai Motor America, headquartered in Fountain Valley, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Co. of Korea. Hyundai vehicles are distributed throughout the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through more than 830 dealerships nationwide. All Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S. are covered by the Hyundai Assurance program, which includes the 5-year/60,000-mile fully transferable new vehicle limited warranty, Hyundai's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty, and five years of complimentary Roadside Assistance. Hyundai Assurance includes Assurance Connected Care that provides owners of Hyundai models equipped with the Hyundai Blue Link telematics system with proactive safety and car care services complimentary for three years. These services include Automatic Collision Notification, Enhanced Roadside Assistance, Vehicle Diagnostic Alert, Monthly Vehicle Health Report and in-vehicle service scheduling.   

For more details on Hyundai Assurance, please visit www.HyundaiAssurance.com. Please visit our media website at www.hyundainews.com and our blog at www.hyundailikesunday.com. Hyundai Motor America on Twitter | YouTube | Facebook

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140319/LA86658LOGO

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131002/LA90771LOGO-b

SOURCE Hyundai Hope On Wheels