Advancing Brain Tumor Research at Riley Children’s Health

Advancing Brain Tumor Research at Riley Children’s Health

Jignesh Tailor, MD, PhD, and his research lab at Indiana University School of Medicine are advancing brain tumor research at Riley Children’s Health through the Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Research Fund.

The fund honors Cecilia Bea Crockett “Beaver,” who was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor in April 2022. Cecilia’s parents, Ben and Allison, partnered with Riley Children’s Foundation, along with Dr. Tailor and Alex Lion, MD, to create the fund and carry on Cecilia’s legacy. Ben recalls Cecilia waking up one morning at Riley Hospital for Children after a hemorrhage and sharing with him, “I have important stuff to do.”

That quote continues to inspire the family and research team in everything they do. Before Cecilia passed away in July 2023, Allison began exploring if there was a way to preserve brain tissue for further research.

“I remember in tears just saying to Dr. Lion, ‘Are you sure this will make a difference?” said Ben. “He said, ‘Ben, you don’t understand. It absolutely will make a difference.' I can’t tell you the joy – the painful joy – with that decision; we are striving to make a difference.”

In 2024, the family then created the Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Research Fund seeded by a generous $25,000 gift. In just two years, the fund has raised more than $850,000 from donors across the state and country, accelerating Riley’s research advancements.

“Philanthropy is critical for a number of reasons,” said Dr. Tailor. “It gives us the seed funding we need to get this important work going. It’s a starting point to perform high-risk experiments to get some data that we then can use to apply for bigger grants. That’s what’s going to drive this program forward.”

The Tailor Lab is investigating the early stages of brain tumors to identify novel therapies, working on two major tumor types: Craniopharyngioma and Pineoblastoma. Throughout the year, he and his team developed a method for analyzing kinases — unique “on-off” switches within cells that determine the cell’s behavior. The overall goal is to determine which FDA-approved drugs could be repurposed for use on these tumors.

The Tailor Lab also studies tumor genesis in children with neurofibromatosis type 2, a rare, debilitating condition in which tumors develop. Beyond supporting the Tailor Lab’s research, gifts to the fund help train the next generation of physician-scientists by providing medical students with hands-on research opportunities. Medical student Kenneth Virgin served as the inaugural Crockett Scholar.

“Surgery itself is not going to be the cure for brain tumors,” said Dr. Tailor. “The cure is going to be here in the lab, where we must continue working to find better treatments. Although Cecilia did lose the battle, I think we have not lost the war. We are reminded every day that — as Cecilia once said — we 'have important stuff to do.’”

Learn more about Cecilia and find out how you can support the Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Research Fund.