IronMatt Grant Program

IronMatt Grant Program is sponsored by IronMatt. IronMatt financially supports families living with pediatric brain tumors and funds research into finding a cure. The Grant Program reviews groundbreaking project proposals for pediatric brain cancer, with a rigorous peer-review process.

Research/Grants - IronMatt Donate to Support This Important Work Pediatric brain tumor research is a long and expensive process. It can take years to complete a single study. And it can take well over 15 years and $5 billion to turn a laboratory discovery into a new drug that impacts a patients’ life.

A scientist operating a research lab spends $50,000 to $500,000 each year on equipment and salaries, plus $20,000 or more a year for materials used in the lab. They need anywhere from $300 to $500 for cancer cells to use in just one experiment and as much as $800 on a single bottle of specialized solution. This investment in time and resources is significant, but the potential impact is incalculable.

Research is the only way we will discover and deliver cures to children with pediatric brain tumors — and IronMatt is dedicated to supporting research into this terrible disease. Since 2007, our Board of Directors has worked to fulfill the IronMatt mission to financially support families living with pediatric brain tumors and to fund research in the hopes of finding a cure.

The Grant Program , driven by top physicians on our Medical Advisory Committee , continues to review groundbreaking project proposals from cancer researchers around the country. As of 2025, IronMatt has granted over $8 million, funding 92 important research projects at institutions across the U.S. and Canada. Our Rigorous Review Process At IronMatt, we use a rigorous peer review process to select research grants.

Peer review is a grant review process used by many organizations, including the National Institute of Health, to determine which research grants will be funded. Through this process, we strive to fund the very best research — funding projects that have the potential to advance the field and impact patients’ lives as rapidly as possible.

Grant applicants are encouraged to submit pre-clinical and clinical grant requests for pediatric brain cancer. Grants are evaluated via our peer review process by the Medical Advisory Committee (MAC). Apply to the Matthew Larson Research Grant today, and join the fight against childhood brain cancer.

To be considered for the 2026 research grant, applicants must first submit a letter of intent. Deadline: November 16, 2025 Our MAC will review your letter of intent, and if selected, you will be invited to submit a formal application.

2025-26 Grant Information Letter of Intent Instructions Submit Your Letter of Intent 2026 IronMatt Grant Award Winners One-Year Grant @ $100,000 Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX Targeting Group 3 Medulloblastoma Stem Cells Using Protogenin-Specific CAR T Cells John Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD Targeting Epigenetic Plasticity in ATRT University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI Direct Targeting of MYC Translation in Group 3 Medulloblastoma University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA Investigating the PDGFRβ signaling dependency in ZFTA fusion First Year Funding of Three-Year Grant @ $150,000 Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY Epigenetic DNA Damage Immune Crosstalk as a Therapeutic Vulnerability in Brain Rhabdoid Tumors University of Colorado, Denver, CO Phagocytosis-Primed CAR Macrophages to Reprogram the Immune Microenvironment in Diffuse Midline Glioma Second Year Funding of Three-Year Grant @ $150,000 Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA Dr. Pratiti Bandopadhayay Overcoming Resistance to Chemotherapy in Infant Brain Tumors Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD Effect of Targeted Therapy on Tumor Microenvironment in BRAF-Altered Glioma St.

Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN Influence of Catecholamine Signaling on DMG University of Colorado, Denver, CO Testing the Preclinical Efficacy of Logic-Gated CAR-T Cells in Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumor (ATRT) Postponing Second Year Funding of Three-Year Grant @ $150,000 until review of progress report (Jan 15, 2027) Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY A Phase I Dose-Escalation Trial of Intracerebroventricular Radioimmunotherapy Using 89Zr/177Lu-DTPA-Omburtamab in Pediatric and Adolescent Patients with Recurrent or Refractory B7H3 Expressing Primary or Metastatic CNS Tumors 2025 IronMatt Grant Award Winners First Year Funding of Three Year Grant @ $150,000 Dr. Pratiti Bandopadhayay Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA Overcoming Resistance to Chemotherapy in Infant Brain Tumors Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD Effect of Targeted Therapy on Tumor Microenvironment in BRAF-Altered Glioma Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY A Phase I Dose-Escalation Trial of Intracerebroventricular Radioimmunotherapy Using 89Zr/177Lu-DTPA-Omburtamab in Pediatric and Adolescent Patients with Recurrent or Refractory B7H3 Expressing Primary or Metastatic CNS Tumors St.

Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN Influence of Catecholamine Signaling on DMG University of Colorado, Denver, CO Testing the Preclinical Efficacy of Logic-Gated CAR-T Cells in Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumor (ATRT) One Year Grant @ $100,000 Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX An Early Phase Trial of C7R-GD2.

CAR T Cells for Treatment of High-Grade Pediatric CNS Tumors John Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD Targeting Epigenetic Plasticity in ATRT Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY Armored EphA2 Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cell Therapy for Pediatric Embryonal Tumors University of Colorado, Denver, CO Targeting Methylome in Radiation-Resistant MYC-Amplified Medulloblastoma A pediatric brain tumor diagnosis is not a journey anyone should travel alone.

Together, we can free families from financial stress and fight childhood brain cancer. Together, we are strong. We are fearless.

We are IronMatt. IronMatt Grants in the News Breaking the Barrier: A Better Way to Fight Pediatric Brain Tumors When it comes to treating pediatric brain tumors, one of the biggest hurdles isn’t just finding the right drug. It’s getting that drug exactly where it needs to go.

For A Burden Lifted: A Heartfelt Thank You from IronKid Gryffin’s Family When a child is diagnosed with a pediatric brain tumor, a family’s world stops — but the bills do not. At the IronMatt, our Family Assistance Program is designed to A Magical Experience for our IronKids: IronMatt Week at Pony Power Therapies!

Last week, from July 20th to 23rd, IronKids and their families traded their daily routines and stressors for the peaceful pastures of Mahwah, NJ. We are incredibly proud to share