Innovation Award

The Innovation Award by FIGHT KIDS CANCER & St. Baldrick’s Foundation is made for innovative and impactful research. The nomination and review process is administered by the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, funded and awarded by FIGHT KIDS CANCER.

Timeline: 

  • Nominations open November 28, 2025
  • Nominations due by December 26, 2025 by 5 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) – United Sates / 11 p.m. Central European Time (CET)
  • Nominees for consideration chosen and invited to file an Application by January 20, 2026
  • Applications due by February 23, 2026 by 5 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) – United Sates / 11 p.m. Central European Time (CET)
  • Grantee notified by April 20, 2026
  • Award announced at SIOPE / CCI-Europe annual conference in Glasgow, UK on May 4, 2026 (Grantee must be present)

Note: This Innovation Award cannot be applied for; only Nominations are accepted.

While this Innovation Award is unique and focuses on innovation with freedom from the constraints of normal grant mechanisms, the following guidelines apply.

Innovation Award Overview: 

  • Award is €250,000 a year for 4 years (€1 million in total) to support innovative childhood cancer research.
  • Award to be presented at the SIOPE / CCI-Europe annual conference in Glasgow, in May 2026
  • One to two Innovation Awards to researchers working in an institution based in one of these countries: Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Moldova, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
  • There is no citizenship requirement.

This Innovation Award is inspired by our common values, which include:

  • Thinking outside the box – risk-taking – true innovation
  • Collaboration – including international participation.
  • Development of early- to mid-career scientists

More information on the nominee’s criteria, the nomination process and the review and selection process are to be found in the Request for Applications.

About FIGHT KIDS CANCER 

For the Innovation Award, FIGHT KIDS CANCER includes five European philanthropic organisations that actively support research on paediatric cancers and decided to join forces and establish the FIGHT KIDS CANCER (FKC) research programme. These organisations are:

FKC aims to address the lack of research dedicated to paediatric cancers by sustainably providing support to the best European research. FIGHT KIDS CANCER aims to catalyse and support pan-European leading-edge research initiatives in paediatric cancer to develop innovative approaches to improve the outcome for all children and adolescents with cancer. The FKC Programme is operated by the European Science Foundation.

About The St. Baldrick’s Foundation 

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation is a volunteer and donor powered charity committed to supporting the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers and give survivors long and healthy lives.

For more information, please visit StBaldricks.org. You can also search current and past grants at StBaldricks.org/grants.

Previous Innovation Award Editions

2025 Innovation Award 

The 2025 FIGHT KIDS CANCER & St. Baldrick’s Foundation Arceci Innovation Award was awarded in May 2025 to Dr. Joshua Waterfall.

Head of the Integrative Functional Genomics of Cancer team at Institut Curie, Dr. Joshua Waterfall is an accomplished interdisciplinary researcher with a strong publication record in top journals. He holds a PhD in theoretical physics from Cornell University—followed by a remarkable shift to a postdoctoral fellowship in molecular biology and genetics and a research fellowship at the National Cancer Institute—and now leads cutting-edge research at the intersection of physics, biology, artificial intelligence, and advanced technologies to advance cancer immunotherapy, with a special focus on paediatric forms.

2024 Innovation Award 

The 2024 FIGHT KIDS CANCER & St. Baldrick’s Foundation Arceci Innovation Award was awarded in May 2024 to Dr. Sophie Postel-Vinay.

Dr. Sophie Postel-Vinay has an impressive track record of publications in top tier journals and a strong record of conducting original research, which has successfully been translated into clinical trials. She is highly collaborative and has achieved excellent international and innovative work with her career between the UK at the University College of London and France at Gustave Roussy. She focuses on innovative therapeutics for sarcomas in children and adolescents.