The Children's Foundation donates 150 million to fight childhood cancer

The Children's Foundation donates 150 million to fight childhood cancer

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Texas Children’s Hospital today announced a $150 million gift from the Kinder Foundation. The transformational gift creates Children's Cancer Center for Children's Cancer, a joint venture of UT MD Anderson Cancer Center and Texas Children's Hospital with a single mission: to end childhood cancer.

The gift is one of the largest philanthropic donations to an American pediatric hospital and one of the largest in the history of the Texas Medical Center (TMC). With this extraordinary support, the Children's Cancer Center is the largest and most comprehensive cancer center in the country focused exclusively on children. The center will be located in a new facility centrally located at TMC on the 6700 block of Main Street in Houston.

Our philanthropic efforts are focused on supporting transformational projects in Houston, and this initiative exemplifies that mission in every way. We have been deeply impressed by the exceptional leadership and unwavering commitment of UT MD Anderson and Texas Children’s to pursue a bold, collaborative model of care. It's a rare and powerful moment when two leading organizations come together to create something completely new - something capable of reshaping the future of pediatric cancer care. We are honored to contribute to what we will become a world-renowned center of excellence. This collaboration is a gift not only to Houston, but to families everywhere who face the unimaginable. “

Rich Children, Chairman of the Children's Foundation

The Kinder Foundation's generous support will serve as the lead gift for a multi-year campaign to secure funding for the new facility and for groundbreaking pediatric oncology research and patient care. This unprecedented investment and collaboration is a testament to both institutions' unwavering commitment to ending childhood cancer.

The Children's Cancer Center will launch in early 2026 and plans to build a new TMC facility with inpatient beds, outpatient care and state-of-the-art research laboratories. Plans for Children's Cancer Center to be connected by a sky bridge to Texas Children's Hospital, the largest children's hospital in the nation. Designed with reason and purpose built with children and families, the Center provides specialty oncology care in a healing environment that combines scientific innovation and clinical excellence to bridge the gap between research and real-world impact on cancer.

“All of us at Texas Children’s are deeply grateful for the incredible generosity of Rich and Nancy,” said Debra F. Sukin, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Texas Children’s. "This historic gift is a testament to the vision and future impact of our groundbreaking collaboration with UT MD Anderson and our shared mission to eradicate pediatric cancer. Our state-of-the-art facility will expand access to children most needed for the most advanced care, clinical research, education and training, and ultimately a comprehensive program that addresses the global fight against the global fight against the disease." global fight against global diseases. Thanks to the Kinder Foundation and our collaboration with MD Anderson, we have support for many generations. “

The Children's Cancer Center combines the collective scale and complementary expertise of the nation's largest comprehensive pediatric health system with the nation's top cancer center, creating more cures by accelerating drug development for childhood cancer patients that maintain UT MD Anderson's powerful clinical trials with driving and industry relationships. This collaborative effort will increase access for children who need specialized cancer care and ensure that children with cancer can live rich, full lives and transition into adulthood free of cancer.

"We are incredibly grateful to Rich and Nancy for their support and for the trust of UT -MD Anderson and Texas Children's to bring this vision to life. In keeping with our mission to end cancer, we are proud to work with Texas children to build the world's prefabricated children's cancer center," said Peter WT Pisters, MD, President of MDOsson. "The Children's Cancer Center will become a global destination for comprehensive childhood cancer care and survivorship and transforming the way children and their families experience diagnosis, treatment and survivorship. We know families will find comfort and hope knowing that these two leading health organizations are focused on childhood cancers."

Both institutions are recognized as leaders in clinical and laboratory research, providing new opportunities for the development of collaborative drug development and clinical trial programs focused on addressing unmet needs for children. The new center will be able to offer more pediatric cancer studies than any other institution, providing innovative options for patients and accelerating the pace of progress.

The center's launch will consolidate pediatric oncology patient care at Texas Children's Hospital, bringing together clinical teams to provide cancer care to children with cancer and support their families. Radiation oncology remains at UT MD Anderson and adolescent/young adult programs are provided at both institutions. The Children's Cancer Center will be governed by a board of directors with equal representation from both institutions, and an international search will be conducted to identify a physician and administrator for the center.

The gift was announced this evening at an event at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston. Dr. Sukin and Pisters celebrated this milestone alongside Nancy and Rich Kinder, Kevin P. Eltife, chair of the UT System Board of Regents, and Park Shaper, chair of the Texas Children’s Board of Trustees.

Together, these efforts mark a nation-leading step in the work to end cancer - bringing hope, cures and breakthroughs to patients and families around the world.

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