Advanced Therapeutics Initiative
Closing the pediatric therapeutics gap.
Children often wait years—sometimes decades—for new therapies to become available, and many promising scientific discoveries never reach the children who could benefit from them. Because children have unique diseases and different biological and developmental needs than adults, they require therapies designed and tested specifically for them.
Rather than creating something new from the ground up, the Advanced Therapeutics Initiative (ATI) builds on the exceptional therapeutic innovation already underway across Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, bringing together expertise and resources to amplify institutional impact.
As a Stanley Manley Children’s Research Institute Hallmark Initiative, Advanced Therapeutics is Lurie Children's institution-wide investment to help bring promising new therapies to children faster. By connecting experts in research, clinical care, regulatory strategy, and early-phase clinical trials, ATI helps move innovative discoveries from the laboratory into pediatric clinical studies. Through collaboration across the institution and with external partners, ATI is expanding access to cutting-edge therapies while advancing the future of pediatric medicine.
ATI is built for collaboration. We welcome opportunities to co-develop therapeutic programs, support early-phase clinical trials, leverage data for translational discovery, and build innovative partnerships.
Focus Areas
ATI is building programs in strategic areas that align with significant unmet pediatric need. Each focus area will be led by a dedicated clinical and scientific leader who will drive innovation, foster cross-disciplinary collaboration, and accelerate the development of new therapeutic approaches.
Mental Health
Novel therapeutics for treatment-refractory pediatric anxiety, depression, and related conditions
Pediatric Oncology
Precision and molecularly guided therapies for high-risk pediatric cancers
Tissue Repair and Engineering
Regenerative and bioengineered solutions for structural and functional restoration in children
Intestinal Permeability Disorders
Precision diagnostics and targeted therapies
Discover More About the Advanced Therapeutics Initiative
Learn About the Data Commons
ATI Data Commons is a core platform enabling next-generation translational research.
Explore Career Development
Our career development program fosters leadership in key areas of therapeutics and clinical research.
ATI Funding Opportunities
Insufficient funding for pediatric therapies represents not only a gap in care, but a tremendous opportunity. ATI funding opportunities help investigators generate the translational evidence needed to advance promising discoveries toward early-phase pediatric clinical testing.
Join Our Team
We are seeking leaders for our Mental Health Core and Tissue Engineering Core.
