XIT Foundation

Children With Cancer Deserve the CRISPR Era, Too. 🎗️

This week, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital was awarded $28.5 million through the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to accelerate personalized CRISPR gene-editing therapies for children with rare inherited disorders.

We applaud St. Jude and ARPA-H for investing in the future of gene editing.

We celebrate this milestone, and we hope it marks the beginning of an era where gene editing reaches every child who could benefit—including children with cancer.

As CRISPR continues advancing the treatment of rare inherited disorders, we believe children with cancer deserve to be part of that future as well.

Many childhood cancers are driven by specific genetic alterations. While gene editing is still in the early stages for pediatric oncology, the same spirit of innovation that is fueling these groundbreaking therapies should also be applied to developing new treatments for children fighting cancer.

Children with cancer deserve more than decades-old treatment options. They deserve access to the most advanced science of our generation.

Children deserve cures. 💛

XIT.org

Link: https://www.fox13memphis.com/news/st-jude-researchers-receive-28-5-million-to-develop-gene-editing-treatment-for-children-with/article_37a37be6-0247-45e1-826c-8f4b22b48d70.html

A personalized cancer-vaccine research initiative may soon consider approximately 10–15 patients across any cancer type—and XIT is happy to help interested families connect with the research team.

Today, the XIT team had the opportunity to speak with Michael Bryan, an MD-PhD student, Cancer Research UK MB-PhD Fellow, DPhil student, and affiliate scientist at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

Michael shared that his team may soon review approximately 10–15 patients with a range of cancer diagnoses for this very early-stage research opportunity.

During our discussion, we asked whether any patient characteristics appeared to be more favorable for this research. Michael shared that, based on their current thinking, patients with a tumor mutational burden (TMB) of 3 mutations per megabase or greater may be more likely to benefit from the type of personalized vaccine being developed. Final eligibility would be determined solely by the research team following an individual review.

We were also encouraged to learn that the team is working to identify tumor mutations through blood samples, so patients without available tumor tissue may not automatically be excluded.

We are grateful to have Michael and this developing science on our radar.

Our team at XIT is always happy to help. If you would like us to facilitate an introduction to the research team, please email us at [email protected]

Important: XIT’s role is limited to facilitating introductions between interested families and the research team. XIT is not involved in determining eligibility. This is an early-stage research opportunity—not an approved treatment or an established clinical trial. An introduction does not guarantee eligibility, participation, access, or clinical benefit. Families should discuss all treatment decisions with their child’s treating oncology team.

🎗️ Children deserve access to emerging science.


Link:
https://www.new.ox.ac.uk/news/michael-bryan-recognised-prestigious-award-work-cancer-vaccines

We believe progress doesn’t have to begin with thousands.

Sometimes it can begin with one child.

Then another.

Then another.

That’s why we’re building the XIT Lab.

A nonprofit laboratory dedicated to advancing therapies and helping promising treatments reach children.

XIT exists to serve the public. Every step we take is guided by the belief that children deserve cures—and that every child deserves the opportunity to benefit from therapies that show real promise.

Stay tuned. Follow. Share.

It’s going to take a village.

But together, we’re neither rare nor small.

XIT.org

This is Sasha.

She fought so hard to live.

Every child who has faced, is facing, or may one day face cancer deserves a cure.

Whether cancer has affected your family or not, this fight belongs to all of us.

Together, we share a responsibility to help stop this disease from devastating our communities.

Children deserve cures. 🎗️
XIT.org

🔬 What Could This Proposed Federal Rule Mean for Future Cancer Therapies?

Understanding OMB-2026-0034
Link: https://www.regulations.gov/document/OMB-2026-0034-0001

Many families affected by cancer are following a proposed federal rule from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) because of how it could influence the research that leads to tomorrow’s treatments.

OMB-2026-0034 proposes changes to how certain federal research grants are reviewed, awarded, and managed. Some scientists, universities, and patient advocates have raised questions about whether these changes could affect the pace of future medical research.

🧬 1. Federal research grants would require additional review before funding

Under the proposal, certain grants would require review by senior political appointees before awards are made, in addition to scientific peer review.

What this could mean:
• Longer wait times before research funding is awarded
• Delays in launching promising studies
• More uncertainty for researchers planning new projects

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🔬 2. Scientific peer review recommendations would remain advisory

Expert scientists would continue to review grant applications, but their recommendations would remain advisory rather than determining funding decisions on their own.

What this could mean:
• Highly rated research proposals may not always receive funding
• Innovative areas of research—including CRISPR, gene editing, CAR-T cell therapies, and other emerging cancer treatments—could face funding uncertainty.

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⏳ 3. Long-term research projects could become less predictable

Many cancer therapies require years—and often decades—of research before reaching patients.

The proposal would give agencies broader authority to end certain discretionary awards if they determine a project no longer aligns with the national interest.

What this could mean:
• Greater uncertainty for long-term research programs
• Possible interruptions to projects already underway
• More difficulty planning multi-year studies

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🏛️ 4. Research may increasingly be evaluated based on changing national priorities

The proposal places greater emphasis on whether projects align with the “national interest.”

Because that term can be interpreted differently over time, research priorities could shift as administrations and agency priorities change.

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📋 5. Additional administrative and compliance requirements

The proposal would introduce additional oversight and compliance requirements that may increase administrative responsibilities for universities, nonprofit research organizations, and smaller biotechnology companies.

What this could mean:
• More time devoted to administrative requirements
• Less time available for scientific research
• Slower progress translating laboratory discoveries into clinical trials

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❤️ Why families care

Every breakthrough in cancer treatment—from immunotherapy and targeted therapies to gene editing and personalized medicine—began as a research project.

At the end of this month, the XIT team will be meeting with Dr. Logan Spector, an epidemiologist who has spent his career studying childhood cancer and cancer patterns.

What questions would you like us to ask about potential cancer clusters, environmental factors, or why childhood cancers may occur in certain communities?

We'll do our best to bring your questions into the conversation and share what we learn with the community afterward.

Together, there is nothing rare about us. 🎗

We wish $100 were donated to pediatric cancer research every time a healthcare professional says:

“It’s not environmental or inherited.”

What we wish they would say instead: “We do not know yet what causes the initiating changes.”

“We don’t know” is not a failure of medicine.
It is often the most honest starting point in science.

The real failure is —treating an unanswered question as though it has already been settled.

Uncertainty should create urgency.
It should provoke curiosity.
It should lead to more questions and deeper research.

Children Deserve Cures.

Full Link: https://nypost.com/2026/07/12/us-news/extremely-rare-cancer-striking-kids-in-rich-socal-city-takes-worrying-turn-as-possible-cause-emerges/

🎗️ XIT.org

💛 Let’s X-IT Together.

This is an important milestone for XIT Foundation.

As we apply for public charity status, every supporter helps demonstrate that this mission matters—and that children deserve access to the therapies they need.

Whether you donate $1 or simply share this post, you’re helping build the future where children have access to cures.

Thank you for standing with us as we move one step closer to building a philanthropic lab dedicated to developing curative therapies for children.

To Donate, please go to XIT.org

Let’s X-IT together.