The Association of Family Members and Friends of Ángel Manzanares (FADAM) has donated €14,754 to the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) to continue promoting research into childhood cancer, specifically pediatric brain tumors. This contribution will ensure the continuity of a project that analyzes the role of the ERK5 protein in different types of central nervous system tumors in children, with the aim of identifying new therapeutic opportunities.

This new donation strengthens the long-standing collaboration between FADAM and VHIR, a partnership that has been consolidated over the years thanks to the association’s commitment to biomedical research as a key tool for improving diagnosis, treatment, and quality of life for children with cancer.

FADAM is a non-profit organization created in memory of Ángel Manzanares, a child who was diagnosed at just two years old with a brain tumor, an anaplastic ependymoma located in the posterior fossa. After four years of intensive treatments, surgical interventions, and a constant struggle against the disease, Ángel passed away in 2004. Since then, his family and friends have transformed his memory into a collective cause, with the aim of helping to prevent other families from having to endure similar situations.

Since its creation, FADAM has worked in various areas related to childhood cancer. On the one hand, it has been an active advocate for the rights of hospitalized children and their families, promoting improvements in areas such as parental presence during hospital stays and financial support related to living expenses. On the other hand, it has made a strong commitment to research, driven by the belief that only through scientific knowledge can more effective and less aggressive treatments be developed.

The project supported by FADAM focuses on the study of the ERK5 protein in pediatric brain tumors such as ependymoma and high-grade gliomas. Through the analysis of several international datasets, the research team has identified an overexpression of ERK5 messenger RNA in pediatric tumor samples, suggesting that this molecular pathway may play a relevant role in the development and progression of these tumors.

“Childhood cancer research remains a scientific and social challenge and requires sustained support. FADAM’s commitment allows us to explore molecular mechanisms that are still poorly understood and to move toward potential new therapeutic strategies for pediatric brain tumors,” emphasizes Dr. Miquel Segura, principal investigator of the Childhood Cancer and Hematological Diseases Research Group at VHIR.

Segura also notes that “initiatives like this help to strengthen translational research, making it easier for advances achieved in the laboratory to eventually reach patients in the form of new diagnostic or therapeutic options.”

For his part, Antonio Manzanares, president of FADAM, explains that the donation is part of the legacy left by his son: “We know that nothing will bring Ángel back, but his legacy is to continue the fight he began. Supporting research is our way of transforming pain into hope and contributing to a future in which childhood cancer has better treatments and, one day, ceases to be a threat.”