Caroline was innocent and pure— drawn to all things good. She possessed a temperament of ineffable sweetness, such that her friends and family began to call her “Peach”. On March 12, 2016 Peach was diagnosed with a rare tumor on her brain stem called DIPG. Inoperable and aggressive, these tumors end in death, in the process causing their victims to gradually lose all function. Peach forbade those around her to cry under penalty of a 25-cent fine; she was not afraid, never complained, and declared, “we must never be angry, and we must never have regrets.” She had gone blind in one eye and deaf in one ear and never mentioned it. On March 18, 2017 at age 9, Caroline went to be with her Savior. 

Caroline’s parents, Michael and Tina Kanis never took no for an answer when pursuing possible treatments for Caroline during her battle. Because of the trials they faced in finding hope and treatment for their daughter, Michael and Tina became determined to not allow another family to feel the hopelessness of this diagnosis. So after Caroline passed they started a foundation and searched for a team willing to find a cure.

Caroline’s P.E.A.C.H foundation is a Philanthropic Endowment Advancing Children's Health to end pediatric brain cancer. On a mission to make kids well, care for their families, and bring art into the places they spend time.

We currently have three pediatric cancer trials open in honor of Caroline (Peachy) Kanis. The PEACH Trial is a Precision mEdicine and Adoptive Cellular tHerapy for the treatment of recurrent neuroblastoma and newly diagnosed diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). Learn more about our trial here.

In addition to funding the PEACH trial we work closely with Beat Childhood Cancer Research Consortium to treat every child’s specific type of cancer in a tailored way, using effective drugs that already exist to prioritize their immediate needs and comforts while safeguarding their long term health, growth, and quality of life; in addition, we have piloted a program to create custom immunotherapies and vaccines that are child-informed, not just cancer-informed. 

Together, we can make a PEACHFUL impact. Donate to our childhood cancer endowment and help us provide support and hope for a future.

How you can help power our mission:

1. Donate: Every dollar counts. Contribute now to help us reach our goal f0r 2025.
2. Share: Share our campaign with your friends, family, and on social media. Your advocacy can amplify our impact.
3. Volunteer: Your time and skills can make an impact too! Email paige@carolinespeach.org to learn more about volunteer opportunities.

Thank you for supporting our mission, your support is invaluable.