CINCINNATI – October 13, 2026 -- Ten research areas, from gene editing to artificial intelligence, could drive the next generation of major advances in child health, according to a special article in Pediatric Research led by Tina Cheng, MD, MPH, who heads the Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation.
Four-physician team selects 10 research opportunities
Cheng worked with Stephen Daniels, MD, PhD, of Children's Hospital Colorado; Jessica Snowden, MD, MS, of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center; and Tracy Glauser, MD, associate director of the Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation. The article builds on a 2016 report on seven great achievements in child health research, which Cheng co-authored.
Priority list spans genetics, AI, vaccines and cancer
The 10 areas are:
- Genetics, genomics, gene editing and gene therapy
- Mental health, behavioral health and neurodevelopment
- Vaccines, immunization and infectious disease prevention
- Artificial intelligence, digital health and informatics
- Neonatal care, prematurity, perinatal health and fetal origins of disease
- Personalized medicine and targeted therapeutics
- Social drivers, health disparities and health equity
- Obesity, nutrition and weight management
- Environmental health, climate change and exposures
- Cancer, cancer treatment and immunotherapy
Cheng warns that federal biomedical funding is under strain
Cheng said realizing the promise of these areas requires funding and support to maintain and accelerate momentum and to translate science into practice and policy. She noted that U.S. federal support for biomedical research has recently been "seriously challenged."
Child health research has historically been underfunded compared with adult health research, even in the best economic circumstances, Cheng said. She called for child health to receive an equitable share of available resources.
Cincinnati Children's publishes further detail on each category on its Research Horizons science blog.