Ian's Friends Foundation (IFF) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to funding novel pediatric brain tumor research and supporting affected families. Since its inception, IFF has raised over $40 million, funding 50 groundbreaking research projects at 26 world-renowned US institutions.
In September, IFF held the 2024 WhatIFF Symposium, which featured doctors, clinicians and researchers from leading institutions around the globe, including Scott Floyd, MD, PhD, and lab members. In a Shark Tank–style event, participants pitched innovative ideas for advancing pediatric brain cancer treatment and fellow attendees voted on the most innovative treatment modalities. The top three projects received a grant of up to $100,000 each from IFF to accelerate the research.
Dr. Floyd and his lab were selected as winners; the comments stated that the "presentation yielded great promise with FLASH radiation and its capacity to deliver high doses of radiation while sparing healthy tissue, thereby increasing the potential for enhanced therapy and laying the groundwork for the delivery of combinational therapies."