Physician scientist receives $250,000 grant from Hyundai Hope On Wheels in honor of National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month - Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

Seattle – Sept. 10, 2013 – Hyundai Hope On Wheels® and Seattle-area Hyundai dealers today will award a physician scientist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center with a $250,000 Hyundai Hope Grant for pediatric cancer research. The funds will support Dr. Ann Dahlberg’s research, which is focused on decreasing life-threatening infections in patients with high-risk leukemias. Dahlberg, a research associate in the Clinical Research Division at Fred Hutch, is among 41 recipients of Hope On Wheels’ 2013 Hyundai Hope Grants. In all, Hope On Wheels will award $10.25 million in grants this September in honor of National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

The donation is part of Hope On Wheels’ annual September campaign celebrating National Cancer Awareness Month, as a well as a new effort by Hyundai to thank its millions of owners who have helped Hope On Wheels raise more than $72 million in pediatric cancer research funding during the past 15 years. Hyundai Hope Grants fund research projects with the greatest potential to improve the lives of children battling cancer. Since 2011, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center has received $600,000 from Hope On Wheels.

“The grant from Hyundai Hope On Wheels will help us successfully investigate a new approach to decreasing life-threatening infections in patients with high-risk leukemias,” Dahlberg said. “Through our work, we hope to not only make these methods more effective and economically feasible but ultimately develop novel therapies that will save lives.”
 
The $250,000 Hyundai Hope Grant to Dahlberg will be officially presented during a Hope On Wheels Handprint Ceremony at Fred Hutch on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at 2pm. During the ceremony, Seattle-area children battling cancer will place their handprints dipped in colorful paint on an official Hope On Wheels lab coat that will be presented to Dahlberg. Every handprint tells a story and this ceremony celebrates the courageous lives of the children faced with cancer and brings Hope On Wheels’ community of supporters together.   

Throughout September, Hope On Wheels also will conduct a new social media campaign inviting the public to join the pediatric cancer fight and share stories of children battling cancer to raise awareness about this disease, which affects nearly 15,000 new children annually in the U.S.  Visitors to Hyundai’s Facebook page will be able to lend a hand through the app “Every Handprint Tells A Story,” which allows visitors to add their handprint to an interactive map of hope, as well as watch and read the stories of some of the amazing children. Hope On Wheels collects the handprints of hundreds of children each year, and each represents the hope and courage of an individual child impacted by cancer.  

“Through the support of our dealers, hospital partners, and online community, Hope On Wheels remains steadfast in its drive to find a cure for these children impacted by cancer,” said John Krafcik, president and CEO, Hyundai Motor America. “While we celebrate our 15-year milestone with Hyundai Hope On Wheels, we acknowledge that there is still work to be done and invite everyone to unite with this cause during September.”

Hope On Wheels builds public awareness about the importance of this cause and provides funds to nonprofit children’s hospitals across the U.S. for pediatric cancer research and programs. The nonprofit is funded by Hyundai and its U.S. dealers. With every new vehicle sold in the U.S., Hyundai and its dealers make a contribution to Hope On Wheels.

For more information about Hyundai Hope On Wheels, please visit www.HyundaiHopeOnWheels.org.   
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