We’re the face of CP research. Cerebral Palsy Alliance Research Foundation (CPARF) funds the brightest US researchers to change what’s possible for cerebral palsy.
Our Mission
We are the foremost organization in the world that solely focuses on cerebral palsy (CP) research. CP is the most common lifelong physical disability in the world and it is one of the most underfunded. We will be the ones to change that. We find, fund, and support the researchers who positively reshape what it’s like to live with CP.
CPARF’s mission is to change what’s possible for cerebral palsy through research.
What We Fund
Cerebral palsy research is vastly underfunded. That means there’s so much research that should be done and could be done — if only there was funding for it. And less common disabilities with lower lifetime costs receive exponentially more federal funding.
We’re here to change that.
We’ll do it that through strategic funding directed to five research priorities:
- Early detection and early intervention
- Chronic pain
- Technology
- Regenerative medicine
- Genomics
Visit our website to learn more.
What We’ve Accomplished So Far
Cerebral palsy research is vastly underfunded, especially given how common this disability is. In the face of that, cerebral palsy researchers have made strides and advances over the last 15 years, paving the way for us to continue to change what’s possible for cerebral palsy.
Investment
We have given out grants totaling $37.5 million to date and robust private funding will help us attract the brightest researchers and advance promising science to the critical clinical trial stage. This means more researchers are starting to focus on cerebral palsy, and the more researchers we can attract, the sooner we can make a deeper impact.
Epidemiology Research
We are delving into the prevalence and incidence of cerebral palsy in the United States to provide a current picture of the landscape — including the needs of the community and the economic stress they face. We expect to uncover data that will rev up the research community and inspire more scientists to study ways to help people with cerebral palsy.
Internal Collaboration
We brought together the sharpest minds in the field at several international cerebral palsy summits to define strategies and fine-tune processes to fast-track scientific breakthroughs and illuminate knowledge gaps for further investigation.
Fulbright Scholar and CPARF team member Professor Iona Novak established Xcellerate, an American-Australian Cerebral Palsy Stem Cell Consortium, utilizing American stem cell researchers and Australian cerebral palsy registers.
General Movements Assessment Research
We are globally promoting the General Movements Assessment, which enables health professionals to identify cerebral palsy in babies as young as three months. This means that children can get treatment sooner, and they can have the best possible start.
Pre-term Birth Research
Administering magnesium sulfate to babies born prior to 30 weeks can lessen the severity of brain injuries, and lessen the severity and occurrence of cerebral palsy.
Therapeutic Hypothermia Research
Babies born at full term may be admitted to intensive care units if health issues arise after birth. If hypothermic treatment is used on them in these cases, it may lessen the severity and occurrence of cerebral palsy.
Causal Pathway Research
Congenital anomalies may be a more significant cause of cerebral palsy than originally thought. By linking data from various registries about at-birth conditions, we may be able to identify new causal pathways for cerebral palsy.