Because of you, the world is bright.
St. Jude is proud to honor its survivors, from the newly diagnosed to those who have been with us since the hospital opened in 1962. One way we do that is with an annual Survivor Box.
This year’s box will be mailed in the spring. It will arrive near National Cancer Survivors Day, which takes place in June. That day celebrates survivors. It also highlights their medical challenges and the importance of research and education.
Thank you for your patience as we move to this new timeline.
Past year highlights
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St. Jude has been studying the impact of COVID-19 on childhood cancer patients and survivors.
With the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, St. Jude offered a testing site for a phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial. The goal was to evaluate a vaccine candidate in adults.
Along with the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP), St. Jude also launched the Global COVID-19 Observatory and Resource Center for Childhood Cancer. This project shares the details, insights and best practices in treating pediatric cancer patients who have the virus that causes COVID-19.
St. Jude also created free COVID-19 resources. These include:
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The St. Jude – Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project (PCGP) recently marked 10 years of discovery. The PCGP has helped us better understand childhood cancer. It has also taught us about the diagnosis and treatment of childhood cancer. PCGP scientists completed and analyzed whole genome sequences of tumor and normal tissue from about 800 St. Jude cancer patients with 23 different types of cancer. St. Jude now offers genomic testing to all eligible patients. The hospital also created the Cancer Predisposition Program. It offers genetic counseling, testing and education to St. Jude patients, families and providers.
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Richard Finkel, MD
About 1 in 6 children has some form of neurological disability. So, St. Jude has begun a new program to better understand and treat children with neurological diseases. These disorders include spinal muscular atrophy and Duchennes muscular dystrophy. Peter McKinnon, PhD, of St. Jude Genetics, leads the basic research arm, the Center for Pediatric Neurological Disease Research. Richard Finkel, MD, heads the new Center for Experimental Neurotherapeutics. Under Finkel’s leadership, St. Jude will open its first clinical trials for neurological diseases this year.
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The Childhood Solid Tumor Network (CSTN) data portal on St. Jude Cloud offers access to 170 patient-derived samples. These represent 21 childhood solid tumors, including neuroblastoma, rhabdomyosarcoma and rare tumors. St. Jude created the CSTN to stimulate the research and development of novel, lifesaving therapies. More than 230 scientists worldwide have requested and received more than 1,600 tumor vials to advance scientific discovery.
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St. Jude is home to the nation’s most powerful nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer. It helps scientists visualize once unknown structures. The findings will help scientists design new targeted therapies for adult and childhood cancers.
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Matt Lear is the technical director of the St. Jude Biorepository, one of the support labs that will be relocating into the new Shared Resource Center.
St. Jude has built a $13.4 million, 30,000-square-foot shared resource center. More than 20 core support labs and technologies are in this building. The facility will help scientists discover new treatments for childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases.
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U.S. News & World Report once again ranked St. Jude as one of the nation’s top childhood cancer hospitals. St. Jude has been included every year since the list began in 2008.
The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) also recognized St. Jude with the prestigious Magnet®️ designation for the second time.
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St. Jude has 60 different tree species on campus. The hospital is working to become a level 2 arboretum.
Research Highlights
- Findings from a St. Jude study may help predict which childhood cancer survivors are at higher risk of another cancer.
- A study of 1,520 childhood cancer survivors found that more than one-third had severe hearing loss. This raises their risk for neurocognitive issues.
- St. Jude created a model to show how to tailor heart health screening for childhood cancer survivors.
- Researchers in the lab found a new combination therapy to target the rare immune disorder hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH).
- A St. Jude study showed how gene mutations passed down through families help cause a type of childhood brain tumor.
- St. Jude scientists are included on the Highly Cited Researchers 2020 list. This list features some of the world’s most influential researchers.
- St. Jude researchers found an inherited variation in the GATA3 gene strongly influences early response to chemo and is linked to relapse in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
- The VHL Alliance named St. Jude as a Clinical Care Center for children with von Hippel-Lindau syndrome, a rare genetic condition.
- St. Jude scientists developed a software system to detect once unknown cancer-causing gene fusions. This lays the groundwork for possible new treatments.
- A St. Jude study showed how the LC3-associated endocytosis pathway prevents inflammation. This may offer a clue to treat Alzheimer’s disease.
- Melissa Hudson, MD, won the Northwestern Mutual Award for Excellence in Childhood Cancer Survivorship from the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology.
What's next?
New patient housing: Construction has begun on a six-story, 288,998-square-foot patient housing facility. It should open in spring 2023. The facility will feature 140 units for both short-term and long-term stays.
Family Commons and school: Progress on the St. Jude Family Commons was delayed due to COVID-19. Construction should resume in 2021. The Family Commons will be open only to patients and families. They will be able to shop, snack, make travel plans and handle basic needs. An enhanced 10,895-square-foot school will also be offered there. The new school will use St. Jude science experts to offer exciting classes for patients.
Advanced Research Center: This 625,000-square-foot building is on track to open in 2021. It will include eight floors of labs and scientific space where scientists will work together to generate new ideas.
Frequently Asked Questions
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If you are an active or former patient of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, you should have received an annual Survivor Box. Please complete the Survivor Box Replacement form. Replacements are shipped within 4-6 weeks.
Your contact information will be used to update our patient records, which is used for hospital communications and will not be used for any other purposes.
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If an item was missing or broken in your Survivor Box, please contact us at survivorbox@stjude.org. If you need a replacement enamel survivor pin, please fill out the Replacement form. Replacements are shipped within 4-6 weeks.
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If you need a replacement enamel survivor pin, please fill out the Pin Replacement form. Replacements are shipped within 4-6 weeks.
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If you are an active or former patient of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, please complete the Update Your Contact Information form.
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After reviewing the Survivors Day event, we found that only 3% of our survivors and their families were able to participate each year. In an effort to share the educational and memorable materials with a larger share of our survivor families, we developed the Survivor Box. Last year, more than 9,400 received a Survivor Box.
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While we do not have additional copies to distribute to large groups, we can offer a downloadable pdf of the booklet for personal printing. We have also included links to the educational booklet above.