Beat Childhood Cancer
Lead Biostatistician for the Beat Childhood Cancer Research Consortium — multicenter pediatric oncology trials for neuroblastoma, brain tumors, sarcomas, and rare cancers.
About the Consortium
The Beat Childhood Cancer Research Consortium (BCC) is a dynamic network of 50+ member universities and children’s hospitals offering a worldwide network of childhood-cancer clinical trials and collaboration. BCC’s international scope ensures that children with cancer have access to a full range of medical services — including targeted therapies such as precision immunotherapy for neuroblastoma, brain tumors, sarcomas, and rare cancers.
The consortium is primarily funded by the Beat Childhood Cancer Foundation, founded and led by parents, with support from Four Diamonds and other foundations. BCC joined Penn State College of Medicine in September 2023.
- Chair and Founder — Dr. Giselle Saulnier Sholler, MD, MSc (Division Chief of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Penn State Health Children’s Hospital)
- Lead Biostatistician — Arthur Berg, Ph.D. (2024–present)
- Enrollment inquiries — BCCEnroll@pennstatehealth.psu.edu
- Consortium website — research.beatcc.org
My Role
As Lead Biostatistician I provide statistical leadership across the active portfolio, including protocol design, sample-size and power calculation, endpoint definition, interim monitoring, FDA correspondence on statistical sections, and end-of-study analyses. Much of the recent work has centered on Bayesian and noninferiority designs for rare pediatric cohorts, where standard frequentist approaches are poorly powered and Bayesian borrowing of information improves sensitivity.
Trial Portfolio
The following trials are open, active, or in development through the BCC network. Full entry criteria, sites, and investigator-contact information are available on ClinicalTrials.gov.
| Trial | Title | Phase | Status | NCT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BCC015 | DFMO + Etoposide for Relapsed/Refractory Neuroblastoma | II | Active | — |
| BCC016 | DFMO as Maintenance Therapy for Medulloblastoma | II | Active | NCT04696029 |
| BCC017 | PEACH: Precision Medicine & Adoptive Cellular Therapy for NBL/DIPG | I | Active | NCT04837547 |
| BCC018 | Naxitamab Added to Induction Therapy for Newly Diagnosed HR-NBL | II | Active | NCT05489887 |
| BCC020 | DFMO + AMXT-1501 Dose Escalation for NBL, CNS Tumors, and Sarcomas | I/II | Active | NCT06465199 |
| BCC021 | Silmitasertib + Chemo for Relapsed/Refractory Solid Tumors | I/II | Active | NCT06541262 |
| BCC022 | Tipifarnib + Naxitamab for Relapsed/Refractory Neuroblastoma | II | Active | NCT06540963 |
| BCC023 | DFMO for Ewing Sarcoma and Osteosarcoma (Basket) | II | Active | NCT07321912 |
| BCC024 | IL13Rα2-Targeting Immunotoxin GB13 for DIPG (Targepeutics) | I | In development | — |
| BCC025 | NEXT-NB: Transplant-Free Naxitamab Consolidation for HR-NBL | II | In development | — |
| NMTRC012 | MGT Upfront RCT: Immunotherapy ± DFMO for Newly Diagnosed HR-NBL | — | Part B Open | NCT02559778 |
| NMTRC014 | DFMO Maintenance Therapy Trial | — | Active | — |
Trial acronyms: NBL = neuroblastoma · HR-NBL = high-risk neuroblastoma · DIPG = diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma · CNS = central nervous system · EFS = event-free survival · OS = overall survival · DFMO = eflornithine · NEXT-NB = non-myeloablative transplant-free high-risk neuroblastoma consolidation.
For BCC-related biostatistical publications, see the pediatric-oncology filter on the Research page.