Schneider Heads to Outer Space!

Livi Ulinover, 11, one of the children participating in the trial

An innovative and revolutionary scientific trial by Schneider Children's Division of Hemato-Oncology was selected to participate in the upcoming Space Station Mission sponsored by the Ramon Foundation and the Ministry of Science and Technology.

The scientific trials selected for the upcoming space mission were announced on May 5, 2021. The experiments will be carried into space by Eitan Stiva at the beginning of 2022 - concomitant with the approval of NASA and Axiom Space - to the international space station within the framework of Axiom Spaces's Ax1 mission, Stiva is the second Israeli to head for space. The mission is dedicated to the advance of science, education and technology in Israel.

The experiments were selected by a scientific technology committee headed by Inbal Kreis, a senior member in the Israeli space industry, and Director of Innovation in the Missile and Space Network Division in the aeronautics industry.

The trial aims to characterize leukemia cells under sub-gravitational conditions with or without chemotherapy. Leukemia is the most common type of cancer in children. The majority of children can be cured but there are significant side-effects following treatment. The research findings in space will be compared with those of a similar study on planet earth focusing on the identification of changes in the distribution of cancerous cells and their genetic expression. The results of the trial can contribute to the development of more effective novel therapies with fewer side-effects.

The trial is planned for, and will be conducted by, children being treated in the Hemato-Oncology Division at Schneider Children's, under the supervision of lab techicians, doctors and staff members of the Educational Center at Schneider. As part of the trial, children will reach beyond the limits of their disease and the hospitalization department, and enter into a fascinating area filled with new understanding and self empowerment.