B+ FOUNDATION: FUNDING PROGRESS IN CHILDHOOD CANCER RESEARCH
WITH ‘BE POSITIVE’ DETERMINATION
Joe McDonough shows a classroom of students a picture of Andrew during a school visit to raise awareness about childhood cancer and encourage kids to "be positive."
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The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation has supported the Children’s Oncology Group (COG) in so many ways over the years, it’s hard to know where to begin or how to quantify the positive impact it’s had on the world of childhood cancer research. It all started with an outstanding 14-year-old student-athlete with a mop of blond curls, a glowing smile, and a “be positive” attitude.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE B+ FOUNDATION
Two days after Andrew McDonough led his top-ranked soccer team to victory in a state championship tournament, a concerning pain landed him in the hospital. His parents thought he might have appendicitis.
Hours later, they were standing at his bedside in the intensive care unit, their minds spinning as their son descended into septic shock and cardiac arrest. Then came the devastating diagnosis: acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a fast-growing cancer of the blood and bone marrow.
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Doctors said Andrew might not live through the day. He spent the next five and a half months fighting for his life, enduring nearly 50 operations, four strokes, a fungal infection, and a brain aneurysm, before drawing his last breath in his sister’s arms.
“The world is a little dimmer with Andrew not in it,” said his father, Joe McDonough, President of The B+ Foundation. “I’ve come to accept that. I can’t change that. What I can do is help other families and honor Andrew along the way.”
“The world is a little dimmer with Andrew not in it,” said his father, Joe McDonough, President of The B+ Foundation. “I’ve come to accept that. I can’t change that. What I can do is help other families and honor Andrew along the way.”
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Joe left behind a successful career in corporate marketing to lead The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation. B+ was Andrew’s blood type, and Andrew exuded positivity in everything he did, so “Be Positive” became a central theme for the foundation.
From hot dog sale to granting millions for cancer research Initially headquartered out of the McDonoughs’ home in Delaware, the foundation’s first fundraiser was a hot dog sale at a regional department store. “I walked out of there with $170, jumping up and down, feeling so excited!” Joe recalled. Joe’s not selling hot dogs anymore. In 2024, The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation raised nearly $12 million. |
The B+ Foundation honors Andrew McDonough, who died at age 14 on July 14, 2007, 167 days after he was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
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Right from the beginning, Joe drew on his depth of experience working at JPMorgan Chase and other companies to draw up a strategic plan for The B+ Foundation. He set out ambitious goals for increasing revenue year by year, raising funds from community events like its annual B+ 5K Run/Walk, individual donors, school-based events, and corporate sponsorships from all over the country.
Ali McDonough holds a portrait of her brother, who drew his last breath in her arms.
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It didn’t take long for COG to pop up on the foundation’s radar. Whatever Joe learned about promising research to improve treatments, outcomes, and the long-term health and wellness of kids with cancer, there always seemed to be a COG connection.
“With very few exceptions, there’s nothing that happens in childhood cancer research that COG isn’t involved in,” Joe said. Since 2007, The B+ Foundation has raised tens of millions of dollars, awarding more than 250 grants supporting research on a broad array of childhood cancers and promising treatments like immunotherapy, which harnesses a patient’s own immune system to destroy cancer cells. |
“We did not want to focus on one hospital or the disease Andrew had,” Joe said. “From the beginning, we were clear about wanting to fund a wide range of research. And it had to be collaborative — so COG checked all the boxes. It’s the hub of the wheel of collaboration.”
Funding ideas with potential for big impact
The B+ Foundation has backed some COG’s most important initiatives, including Project:EveryChild, a “biobank” of blood and tissue samples from tens of thousands of kids. Scientists from all over the world use specimens from Project:EveryChild to move research forward.
Funding ideas with potential for big impact
The B+ Foundation has backed some COG’s most important initiatives, including Project:EveryChild, a “biobank” of blood and tissue samples from tens of thousands of kids. Scientists from all over the world use specimens from Project:EveryChild to move research forward.
Some B+ Foundation grants go directly to COG, though most fund scientists and institutions in COG’s network, such as Dr. Brian Crompton, MD at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, who is making major strides in “liquid biopsy” research on circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA).
ctDNA in the blood can give doctors precise, real-time data about whether a patient’s treatment is working, so it can be dialed up, scaled back, or switched out for a different drug.
ctDNA in the blood can give doctors precise, real-time data about whether a patient’s treatment is working, so it can be dialed up, scaled back, or switched out for a different drug.
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Seeing and supporting efforts others overlook
The B+ Foundation directs many of its funds to improving care and outcomes, but they also support other important aspects of research, like data science and survivorship. When first approached about supporting COG’s Statistics and Data Center, Joe wasn’t sure it fit the foundation’s focus on cutting-edge, collaborative research. “I balked at that initially, because early on, I was thinking in the mindset of research as biology,” Joe said. Then he learned what key players biostatisticians are in all of COG’s research, and how they make vital contributions to the initial design of a study, data monitoring, and analyzing outcomes. That’s when Joe realized that supporting the work of biostatisticians “kind of opens the floodgates, so more research can be conducted.” |
Joe ran the 2024 New York City Marathon with 35 names penned to his arm, Andrew and 34 other children he personally knew who have died of cancer. He and other B+ Foundation runners raised more than $60,000 for childhood cancer research.
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The B+ Foundation supports aspects of long-term survival that often don’t jump to mind for kids and families, like ways young people can preserve their ability to have children, themselves, someday.
“When your child is first diagnosed with cancer, you’re probably not thinking about fertility preservation — especially when they’re little,” Joe said. “You’re worried your child is going to die.”
Many children who survive cancer become infertile as a result of chemotherapy or radiation. When Joe learned that technology exists to preserve children’s fertility — even those who haven’t gone through puberty yet — he saw an opportunity to help young cancer survivors lead happy and fulfilling lives as they grow up.
The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation Fertility Preservation Program at Nemours Children’s Health in Wilmington, Delaware, talks to kids, teens, and their families about the risks and benefits of options like freezing eggs or ovarian tissue, sperm or testicular tissue, or moving ovaries away from radiation. The program covers the costs of preservation to lessen the burden for families.
“When your child is first diagnosed with cancer, you’re probably not thinking about fertility preservation — especially when they’re little,” Joe said. “You’re worried your child is going to die.”
Many children who survive cancer become infertile as a result of chemotherapy or radiation. When Joe learned that technology exists to preserve children’s fertility — even those who haven’t gone through puberty yet — he saw an opportunity to help young cancer survivors lead happy and fulfilling lives as they grow up.
The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation Fertility Preservation Program at Nemours Children’s Health in Wilmington, Delaware, talks to kids, teens, and their families about the risks and benefits of options like freezing eggs or ovarian tissue, sperm or testicular tissue, or moving ovaries away from radiation. The program covers the costs of preservation to lessen the burden for families.
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“Our kids lose so much of their childhood. We want to make sure that they don’t lose the option of having this important part of adulthood,” Joe said.
The foundation also supports programs that help siblings deal with the psychosocial strains of adapting to their brother or sister’s diagnosis. It leads advocacy efforts to raise awareness and funding for childhood cancer research. And it’s become the largest provider of financial assistance to families of kids with cancer in the United States, supporting nearly 4,000 families in 2024 alone. |
Always learning and seeking new ways to make an impact
Joe regularly attends COG conferences to stay up-to-date on promising research opportunities. Over the years, he’s also learned a lot from Dr. Peter Adamson, MD, COG Chair from 2011 to 2020, about trends in cancer research and obstacles scientists often face as they try to make research happen.
“Peter once shared a concern that we could lose brilliant young investigators if we don’t do everything we can to make it attractive for them to dedicate their lives to pediatric oncology versus another specialty,” Joe said.
Joe regularly attends COG conferences to stay up-to-date on promising research opportunities. Over the years, he’s also learned a lot from Dr. Peter Adamson, MD, COG Chair from 2011 to 2020, about trends in cancer research and obstacles scientists often face as they try to make research happen.
“Peter once shared a concern that we could lose brilliant young investigators if we don’t do everything we can to make it attractive for them to dedicate their lives to pediatric oncology versus another specialty,” Joe said.
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That conversation led the foundation to establish the COG’s Dr. Peter Adamson Young Investigator Award, granted annually to up-and-coming researchers. The funding helps researchers do the preliminary research that’s often needed before they can secure a larger grant for an actual trial.
“We have brilliant doctors, brilliant investigators,” Joe said. “It’s in our best interest that they’re able to focus on that work rather than fundraising. We need to keep them focused on what they do best.” Joe regularly turns to Dr. Adamson, COG Chair Dr. Doug Hawkins, MD, and other members of The B+ Foundation’s Scientific Advisory Board for guidance on the best opportunities to propel research forward. And he jumps at every chance to encourage others to support COG. |
Joe McDonough and COG Chair Dr. Doug Hawkins, MD congratulate Dr. Michael Ortiz, MD, 2023 recipient of the Dr. Peter Adamson Young Investigator Award.
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“I have never once doubted the return on our investment when we fund COG research,” Joe said. “I hope other charities consider COG as a partner as they try to make a bigger impact.”