Samsung inheritance donation funds pediatric cancer and rare disease research

The family of the late Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee donated 300 billion won to fund a project dedicated to pediatric cancer and rare diseases in South Korea.

The Seoul National University Hospital Pediatric Cancer and Rare Disease Support Project launched this initiative in 2021. The project operates through Seoul National University Children's Hospital and is scheduled to run for 10 years until 2030.

The project group reported that they diagnosed 22,646 patients and provided treatment to 14,757 patients between 2021 and September of this year. These efforts led to the discovery of more than 20 previously unknown rare diseases. The group also established a nationwide diagnostic network where local hospitals send patient samples and genetic information to a central analysis center, which provides results within 4 to 6 weeks.

In the field of pediatric cancer, the project established the first standard treatment protocol for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia in South Korea. They created a system to categorize patients into five risk groups and use next-generation sequencing to track minimal residual disease after treatment. Additionally, the hospital built a system to manufacture CAR-T cells directly and has supplied them to 21 pediatric patients as of September this year.

The project group plans to expand international joint research and accelerate the development of early diagnostic technologies. These goals include high-speed genetic diagnosis for infants in intensive care units, newborn genome screening, and prenatal diagnosis. The group aims to strengthen the cooperation system to apply these research results to actual medical practice.