Kids Beating Cancer Cellular Therapy Facility
Immunotherapy, the Future of Medicine
Kids Beating Cancer is Transforming Access to the Best Care
The Only Hope for a Cure
Kids Beating Cancer has funded more than $1.2 million in the latest advancements in cellular therapy medical technology, now available for the first time in Central Florida and beyond. This groundbreaking investment has removed barriers to life-saving care for children, bringing hope where there was once none.
What Is Cellular Therapy?
Cellular therapy, including stem cell (bone marrow) transplant, is a proven and powerful form of immunotherapy that uses a patient’s own immune system to fight cancer. It works by transferring human cells to repair or replace damaged tissue or immune cells, offering new hope to patients with cancer, leukemia, and other diseases once considered incurable.
These therapies are revolutionizing how we treat cancer, moving us closer than ever to a cure.
A Bold New Era: The Kids Beating Cancer Cellular Therapy Facility
Our most treasured investment, the Kids Beating Cancer Cellular Therapy Facility at AdventHealth for Children, is delivering the most advanced cellular therapies directly to pediatric patients, including CAR-T, the only treatment of its kind in the State of Florida for children.
CAR-T: A Lifesaving Breakthrough
CAR-T therapy is a cutting-edge cellular treatment offering the hope of a cure to children facing the most high-risk cancers or relapsed disease. However, this treatment comes at a cost of $500,000 to $700,000 and is often not covered by insurance.
Before this facility, patients in Florida could only access CAR-T by sending cells out of state, resulting in a 6 to 10 week delay that often-meant children became too sick to continue with treatment.
Now, with this state-of-the-art technology in-house, turnaround time is reduced to just 2 weeks, offering children a fighting chance at survival, at a dramatically reduced cost to families.
Science is the Cure. Access is the Answer. Hope is Here.
Thanks to the vision and commitment of Kids Beating Cancer, children in Central Florida no longer have to wait, or travel for their only chance at a cure. They have access to the most advanced care, the most promising treatments, and above all, hope.
Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell Therapy (CAR T-cell therapy) is a powerful new form of treatment that uses a child’s own immune system to fight cancer.
Our immune system naturally relies on special white blood cells called T-cells to find and destroy abnormal cells—like cancer. But sometimes, cancer cells find ways to hide from these immune defenders.
CAR T-cell therapy changes that.
Doctors first remove T-cells from the patient’s blood and then genetically reprogram them by inserting a special gene. This gene equips the T-cells with a new “chimeric antigen receptor” (CAR) essentially giving them a superpower to recognize and attack cancer cells that were once invisible.
Once modified, these CAR T-cells are returned to the patient, where they go to work targeting and destroying cancer, offering new hope, especially to children who have relapsed or whose cancers have stopped responding to standard treatments.
This breakthrough therapy is transforming cancer care and saving lives, but it’s only possible when access, technology, and timing align.
Advancing the Future of Pediatric Cancer Treatment—Together
Thanks to Donors Like Jeunesse Kids and Supporters Like You
At Kids Beating Cancer, our mission is to ensure that every child has access to the best—and often only—hope for a cure through the most advanced cellular therapies. One of the most exciting advancements is CAR T-cell therapy, a groundbreaking treatment that harnesses a child’s immune system to fight cancer. This therapy, and many others like it, are only possible because of generous donors like Jeunesse Kids and the many compassionate supporters who believe in our vision.
Together, we are not only saving lives—we are transforming the future of pediatric cancer care.
How Your Support is Advancing Therapies and Improving Lives
Flow Cytometer – Faster, Easier Cell Collection
With the purchase of a Flow Cytometer, we’ve significantly reduced the wait time for verifying cell collection from donors and patients, cutting 1 to 3 hours from the process. This improvement minimizes discomfort, particularly for pediatric patients undergoing collection through central lines.
Spectra Optia Apheresis System – In-House, Patient-Centered Care
Previously, pediatric apheresis was handled externally, often requiring two full days to collect cells, an exhausting and painful process, especially for children with brain tumors or neuroblastoma. Kids Beating Cancer brought this service in-house with the purchase of the Spectra Optia Apheresis System by Terumo BCT, creating a faster, safer, and more comfortable experience.
Sysmex Cell Counter – Precision That Saves Lives
Accurate cell dosing is vital to treatment success. The Sysmex Cell Counter, funded by Kids Beating Cancer, provides highly accurate nucleated cell counts, allowing for precise stem cell dosing and better patient outcomes.
Liquid Nitrogen Storage Tanks – Securing the Future of Care
Aging storage equipment can threaten the integrity of precious stem cell samples. We’ve eliminated that risk by funding two new Liquid Nitrogen Storage Tanks, protecting against catastrophic loss. As patient needs grow, two more freezers are needed to sustain operations for the next three years.
Floor Centrifuges – Reducing Side Effects, Improving Recovery
To cryopreserve stem cells, preservatives must be carefully spun down. With two new Floor Centrifuges, we now minimize the amount of DMSO used, reducing serious transplant side effects like nausea, vomiting, and anaphylaxis.
Miltenyi Prodigy & Miltenyi MacsQuant – The Future of Cell Therapy
These state-of-the-art instruments have expanded our capacity to manufacture cutting-edge therapies in-house, including:
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- Alpha-Beta T-cell Depleted Products – To help reduce the risk of Graft versus Host Disease, a major complication of transplant
- NK Selected Cell Therapy Products – A powerful form of immunotherapy
- In-House CAR-T Cell Therapy – With this technology, we are paving the way to produce CAR-T cells on-site, reducing cost, turnaround time, and making lifesaving treatment more accessible than ever before
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Your Support Makes All of This Possible
Every instrument, every innovation, and every moment of hope begins with you. Because of your generosity, children battling cancer have a better chance at life,closer to home, with less suffering, and more hope.
Together, we are beating cancer—one child at a time.
For more information or to help fund the next advancement, contact Sam at sam@kidsbeatingcancer.com or call 407-894-2888.
