His cherished accomplishment? “providing hope for families and letting them know that they're in one of the best places possible.”

When Alberto Pappo, MD, recalls the small gestures of appreciation from St. Jude families, his face lights up with joy.

It’s easy for him to share heartfelt stories of the countless moments he's spent with the patients and families from various cultural backgrounds he serves at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital®, forming bonds that reflect his genuine care and commitment to their well-being. 

"I've had many Hispanic families, and many Mexican families who always bring me chamoys, piloncillo, tamarindo, and mazapan when they go to Mexico,” he said with a smile as he mentioned some of his favorite sweet treats from his own home country. “That makes me very happy because we don't have that here (in Memphis, Tennessee)." 

He is proud of the commitment St. Jude has to patients from around the world, which is reflected in its efforts to provide clinical and non-clinical resources in multiple languages. 

“For example, our website has been translated into multiple languages. This is very important for families that don't have access to regular information on pediatric cancer,"  Pappo said.

St. Jude cares for some of the world’s sickest children regardless of their race, ethnicity, beliefs or ability to pay. Its patients receive the customized care they need to treat childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases, no matter what barriers they may face. 

Pappo went to medical school in Mexico City before moving to San Antonio, Texas, in 1985 for his residency, followed by a fellowship in pediatric hematology-oncology in Dallas. He vividly remembers the moment that changed his career trajectory and brought him to St. Jude in 1991 for his first job. 

"I was asked if I wanted to come and interview here for a job, and I almost fainted," he recalled. "I said, ‘Of course’, because everybody that I used to read about and everybody I emulated was from St. Jude, so what an incredible privilege to come and work here with these investigators that I admired so much. It's the best decision I've ever made."  

Today, he is one of the leaders of the Developmental Biology and Solid Tumor Program at the research hospital. To improve survival rates, the program focuses on understanding the mechanisms of the therapeutic response, so researchers can create strategies to overcome treatment resistance and prevent recurrence.

Pappo also played a role in the establishment of the St. Jude Childhood Solid Tumor Network in 2013. The network aims to accelerate discoveries by providing information on hundreds of tissue samples from pediatric tumors that are made available freely worldwide.  

For him, this type of collaboration in his field is the way to develop and accelerate new treatments for children with very aggressive solid tumors.

He specializes in treating and researching bone and soft tissue tumors as well as rare pediatric cancers such as melanoma, gastrointestinal stromal tumors and soft tissue sarcomas. Rare types of childhood cancer account for about 10% to 11% of all cases, he said.  

“I aim to understand why these rare cancers affect children and define how the pediatric forms of these cancers differ from the adult forms. Our findings can then be used to tailor current treatments and pursue novel treatment strategies.”

At the heart of Pappo's philosophy is the belief in translational research — turning laboratory discoveries into clinical trials. "What we believe is that translational research will provide better cures for these children. So that's really the whole paradigm that we use here at St. Jude, and that's how we want to translate that also to the rest of the world," he said. 

Another of Pappo’s most significant contributions is his research on pediatric melanoma, a type of skin cancer that affects about 300-400 children and teens each year in the United States.  If left untreated, it can spread to other parts of the body.

"What we have discovered here at St. Jude is that this term of ‘pediatric melanoma’ is very broad. There are many different types. And the vast majority of them actually do not require extensive therapy other than surgical removal. We were one of the first ones who were able to show those differences in how pediatric melanoma behaves," he said.  

He acknowledged that this is possible thanks to the role of donors in supporting the commitment of St. Jude: Finding cures. Saving children. “It's through their donations that we're able to conduct the research that we do and provide care for patients," Pappo said.

St. Jude, he said, has "moved the needle against some rare pediatric cancers" but said there are many "left to tackle."  

However, when asked about his role, he said what keeps him going to work every day is clinical care: “to provide the best care for my patients.”

He cherishes the accomplishment of “providing hope for families and letting them know that they're in one of the best places possible and their child will be taken care of.”  

Therefore, he's committed to continuing to make progress against these diseases every day. One child at a time.