• by Les Luchter , Staff Writer, 7 hours ago

To fight pediatric cancer, Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) has teamed with the pharma company Amgen, St. Baldrick’s Childhood Cancer Research Foundation -- and, most famously, noted YouTube personality MrBeast -- for a huge initiative dubbed the SU2C Pediatric Cancer Dream Team.  Its aim: raise awareness and funds for pediatric cancer research.

The campaign kicked off with a 15-minute MrBeast video, “I Granted 100 Kids Their Biggest Wish!,” which has garnered 50 million views since posting in late July.  In fact, Amgen reports it generated 1.7 million views and 250,000 engagements within an hour of posting.   

The video, which features Dr Beast helping cancer kids along with such notables as Lebron James and Dwayne Johnson, also includes family medicine influencer Doctor Mike, and Dr. Jay Bradner, Amgen’s head of R&D, AI and data.

Marketing Daily asked Susie Tappouni, Amgen’s head of corporate affairs, about the new campaign and Amgen’s role.

Marketing Daily: MrBeast’s video kicks off the SU2C Pediatric Cancer Dream Team campaign, but what else will the campaign involve?

Susie Tappouni: The video is the launch moment for a broader effort to raise awareness and support. The goal is to use the initial attention from the video to introduce millions of people to why cancer research matters, and help sustain momentum for fundraising and awareness over time.

MD: What are some other goals of the campaign?

Tappouni: While fundraising is an important aspect, we are collaborating with Stand Up to Cancer and Beast Philanthropy to help accelerate pediatric cancer research.

The Stand Up to Cancer Pediatric Cancer Dream Team will be a collaborative research project that brings together leading scientists, physicians and institutions to accelerate discoveries for children with cancer.

Stand Up To Cancer has set a $10 million fundraising goal for the Stand Up to Cancer Pediatric Cancer Dream Team, and Amgen, Beast Philanthropy and the St. Baldrick’s Foundation have made a collective $6.5 million commitment to help accelerate pediatric cancer research. 

MD: How does this compare with anything Amgen has done in this area in the past?

Tappouni: What is different here is the scale and format: the campaign uses creator-led storytelling to make pediatric cancer research more accessible and engaging for a broad digital audience. It also complements our work in pediatric oncology, including BLINCYTO for certain pediatric patients with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, as well as our broader support for research collaborations that can help advance treatment options for children facing cancer. 

MD: Is the campaign targeting any specific demographics?

Tappouni: The campaign is designed to reach a broad audience, especially people who may not typically engage with traditional healthcare or research communications.

MrBeast’s audience reaches hundreds of millions of highly engaged people around the world, including younger viewers. This platform creates an opportunity to make pediatric cancer research feel more accessible, relatable and actionable.