Basketball Star Danilo Gallinari Shaves Head for St. Baldrick's Foundation and Makes Generous Gift to Support Childhood Cancer Research

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Mar 03, 2023, 16:18 ET

LOS ANGELES, March 3, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The St. Baldrick's Foundation, the largest charity funder of childhood cancer research grants, recently announced a generous donation by Boston Celtics Forward, Danilo Gallinari and the National Basketball Players Association Foundation towards lifesaving childhood cancer research. This funding will specifically support the work of Dr. Carl Allen at Baylor College of Medicine associated with Texas Children's Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, and his team's goal of finding treatments for kids with Burkitt lymphoma in sub-Saharan Africa.

Danilo Gallinari was recently announced as a St. Baldrick's Champion, when he identified St. Baldrick's Foundation as his charity of choice in fall of 2022. Gallinari kicked off his support by getting involved in the charity's Giving Tuesday campaign shortly after. Aside from campaign involvement, Gallinari has dedicated time to meeting St. Baldrick's Honored Kids, children who are fighting or have fought cancer, and fundraising towards the cause.

Gallinari most recently live streamed his head being shaved in solidarity with kids with cancer and asked people to donate towards St. Baldrick's mission to Conquer Kids' Cancer. Joined by St. Baldrick's Ambassador, Jaron Rodriguez and St. Baldrick's board member Ryan Brown, Gallinari expressed the importance of childhood cancer research. "I feel honored to support research initiatives that can positively impact the lives of those who are most vulnerable," said Gallinari. "Investing in research is crucial to finding new treatments and cures for childhood cancer, and I am proud to support the important work being done by St. Baldrick's."

Gallinari has answered his own call to help kids with cancer with a generous donation to St. Baldrick's which will not only have an impact on kids here in the U.S., but will also help kids fighting cancer in Africa. "Thanks to Danilo and the National Basketball Players Association Foundation which matched his contribution, this project will help fight the most prevalent childhood cancer in Africa – a disease that claims the lives of most children diagnosed there," says Kathleen Ruddy, CEO of St. Baldrick's Foundation. "We applaud Danilo Gallinari's commitment. The potential number of children who will be helped is staggering, and we'll look forward to the progress Dr. Allen and his team will make and the hope they will build for future children."

Children with Burkitt lymphoma (BL) in the United States have over 95% survival rate, but over 80% of children with BL in sub-Saharan Africa do not survive. Dr. Allen and his co-investigators, Dr. Nader El-Mallawany and Dr. Nmazuo Ozuah, will specifically focus their research on the nature of lymphoid tissues out of which cancer cells grow. By identifying factors leading to Burkitt lymphoma, Dr. Allen can create opportunities to prevent and treat the disease in sub-Saharan Africa.

For more information about St. Baldrick's Champion Danilo Gallinari and his efforts to Conquer Kids' Cancer, visit his St. Baldrick's participant page. For more information about St. Baldrick's Foundation Grants or ways to get involved, please visit StBaldricks.org.

About St. Baldrick's Foundation
Every 2 minutes, a child somewhere in the world is diagnosed with cancer. In the U.S., 1 in 5 will not survive. The St. Baldrick's Foundation, the largest charity funder of childhood cancer research grants, is on a mission to Conquer Kids' Cancer by supporting the most promising research to find cures and better treatments for all childhood cancers. When you give to St. Baldrick's, you don't just give to one hospital – you support virtually every institution with the expertise to treat kids with cancer across the U.S. St. Baldrick's ensures that children fighting cancer now — and those diagnosed in the future — will have access to the most cutting-edge treatment, by supporting every stage of research, from new ideas in the lab to the training of the next generation of researchers, to lifesaving clinical trials. Visit StBaldricks.org and help #ConquerKidsCancer.

SOURCE St. Baldrick's Foundation