NIH funding cuts delayed by at least one year a promising trial using mRNA technology against DIPG, a nearly incurable childhood brain tumor. Between February and August 2025, more than $2 billion in federal funding was withdrawn or frozen, affecting notably the Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium, which can no longer enroll new patients in clinical trials. Two trials were shut down and four others experienced a 13-month delay. DIPG, which affects approximately 300 American children per year, has a 5-year survival rate of about 2% and no known cure. Eight-year-old John Paul Macri may not have time to wait: his family has enrolled him in hospice care.
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