The world-renowned experts of the Pediatric Blood Cancer Program provide care for all childhood blood cancers. We've tailored our program to meet children's needs in every way, from the kid-friendly design of our facilities to the pediatric specialization of our doctors, nurses, child life specialists and social workers. Our services span a broad age range, from infants to adolescents to young adults (up to age 30).
Our program offers advanced treatments available only at select hospitals around the country. Highlights of our program's care include:
- Access to promising new therapies. Pediatric cancer patients may be able to receive promising experimental treatments by joining a clinical trial, thanks to our participation in national research organizations, such as the Children's Oncology Group, Therapeutic Advances in Childhood Leukemia and Lymphoma Consortium, and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Consortium.
- Access to immunotherapies, including CAR T-cell therapy. Our hematology and oncology specialists have expertise in treating blood cancers with immunotherapy (methods that use the patient's own immune system to attack cancer cells). We're the first medical center in California certified to provide CAR T-cell therapy, an immunotherapy in which the patient's own T cells are genetically engineered to attack their tumors.
- Excellence in JMML care. We're a nationally recognized center of excellence for treating juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML), a very rare cancer. We lead or participate in more clinical trials for this disease and see more JMML patients than any other medical center in the country.
- Precise, personalized treatments. Patients may have access to clinical trials investigating the genetic mutations linked to their conditions, information that can enable us to target their specific cancers with cutting-edge therapies.
- Success with bone marrow transplantation. Some patients benefit from this therapy, and those treated in our Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinic have some of the nation's highest survival rates one year after the procedure.
- Excellent follow-up care. After our patients complete their treatment, they are closely monitored for long-term side effects through our Pediatric Survivorship Program. As part of UCSF Health, we offer continuity of care through adulthood.
Our goal for all our patients is for them to get better as quickly as possible while experiencing as few side effects as possible. We help kids go back to enjoying normal lives.
We are committed to serving patients from all cultures and backgrounds. For patients whose first language isn't English, we provide interpreters to ensure clear and easy communication.
