Hyundai Hope on Wheels awards $250,000 grant to UF Health cancer researcher

For the third consecutive year, a University of Florida researcher has received a Hyundai Hope on Wheels grant to support childhood cancer research. Elias Sayour, M.D., an assistant professor of neurosurgery and pediatric hematology/oncology, is the 2014 recipient. His research focuses on harnessing the immune system through the use of nanotechnology. Nanoparticle vaccines are small enough to deliver molecules to the immune system, which can then be stimulated to induce antitumor activity against pediatric brain tumors. Dr. Sayour and his team will investigate where these particles travel and the kinds of immune responses they generate.

The Hyundai Hope on Wheels nonprofit organization and local Hyundai dealers presented the $250,000 award at a ceremony, during which young patients placed their handprints on a vehicle to commemorate their battles against cancer.