This new funding will help improve outcomes for children born with congenital heart defects —America’s most common birth defect.

Northbrook, IL – January 7, 2026 –  The Children’s Heart Foundation (CHF), the nation’s leading organization dedicated to funding congenital heart defect research, is proud to have awarded more than $1.9 million of new research and scientific collaborations in 2025— the largest amount of funding in a single year in the organization’s history.

Every 15 minutes in the United States, a baby is born with a congenital heart defect, or CHD, making congenital heart defects the nation’s most common birth defect. The Children’s Heart Foundation’s mission is to advance the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of CHDs by funding the most promising research.

This new funding supports research across five key initiatives:

• Independent Research Awards funded by the Foundation, including the Izak Szymczak Research Fund Award and The Cortney Gives BAK Foundation Award
• Collaborative research with the American Heart Association through the AHA/CHF CHD Research Awards
• Funding the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Pediatric Cardiology Research Fellowship Award,
• Support of Cardiac Networks United (CNU), a pediatric congenital cardiovascular research network.
• Scholarship for Researchers Committed to Advancing CHD Research in Racial and Ethnic Minority Communities

The researchers receiving Independent Research Awards are:

• Izak Szymczak Research Fund Award – Mark Rodefeld, MD (Indiana University): “Fontan Pump: Wireless Charge and Control System Development”
• The Cortney Gives BAK Foundation Award – Christopher Broda, MD (Baylor College of Medicine): “Cellular Senescence in Blood as a Biomarker of Failure in Adults with Fontan Circulation”
• William Goodyer, MD, PhD (Stanford University School of Medicine): “Precision Treatment of Ventricular Arrhythmias in Congenital Heart Disease”
• David Frank, MD, PhD (The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia): “Mechanisms Driving Neointima Formation in PVS”
• Joel Schilling, MD, PhD (Washington University in St. Louis): “Unraveling the Mechanisms of Fontan Associated Liver Disease”

“This $1.9 million investment in CHD research represents both a powerful milestone and a promise for the future,” said Terry Morrow, President and CEO of The Children’s Heart Foundation. "Together with our donors, volunteers, and partners, we are accelerating discoveries that bring earlier answers, better care, and more hope to families affected by congenital heart defects.”

Since 1996, The Children’s Heart Foundation has invested over $21 million in CHD research and scientific collaborations. As The Children’s Heart Foundation begins its 30th anniversary year, this historic funding reflects three decades of commitment to accelerating discovery, improving outcomes, and giving children with CHDs the chance to live longer, healthier lives.