Every year in Australia, 1,200 families face the heartbreaking news no parent ever wants to hear: your child has cancer. For more than 30 years, The Kids’ Cancer Project has worked to transform what comes next – funding bold, research-driven innovations that improve treatments, increase survival rates and help young people thrive beyond their diagnosis. The fully independent, not-for-profit organization relies entirely on the generosity of its supporters to fund groundbreaking childhood cancer research. Its mission is guided by a powerful vision: that 100% of children, adolescents and young adults not only survive cancer but live full, healthy lives – free from the long-term side effects of treatment. And the progress is undeniable. Since The Kids’ Cancer Project began, survival rates for childhood cancer have risen from 55% to 87%.

Where science, data and compassion merge

A scientific mindset runs through every part of The Kids’ Cancer Project – not just in the research it funds, but in how the organization operates. The data and analytics team plays a key role in ensuring that every donation from the charity’s valued supporters delivers the greatest possible impact. For Henry Yuen, Head of Technology and Data for The Kids’ Cancer Project, this commitment has led to a longstanding partnership with SAS that has grown over time, as his team works to better understand and support the ways donors choose to give.

This commitment to smarter, more strategic fundraising has driven a steady evolution in the charity’s data capabilities. Using SAS Customer Intelligence 360, the data and analytics team has transformed the ways supporter information is collected, prepared, analyzed and presented – moving from static records to a dynamic, data-driven understanding of each donor. This now includes behavioral insights that show how supporters interact, navigate and respond.

Yuen and his team have gained a deeper understanding of how supporters engage with The Kids’ Cancer Project across its digital platforms – from its website and microsites to social media channels. “SAS Customer Intelligence 360 provides real-time visibility, allowing us to see where supporters arrive, how they navigate across our channels, when and where they choose to donate, as well as where they drop off,” Yuen says. “We now have a unified view of the donor journey, allowing for more timely and personalized engagement.”

Messages that resonate and spur action

Armed with this wealth of intelligence, The Kids’ Cancer Project can pair data with creativity, testing and refining its digital properties based on real behavior. This includes experimenting with its online footprint, assessing the impact of assorted color palettes, adjusting messaging and fine-tuning content to better understand what resonates with supporters and drives donations.

“Our approach to connecting and communicating with supporters has evolved in exciting ways,” Yuen says. “This has opened our eyes to what is possible when donor-centric engagement is powered by sophisticated marketing automation and analytics.”

With more than 50 researchers working across four pillars – discover, translate, support and build – the charity takes a rigorous approach to funding and supporting scientists in the crucial initial stages of research. For Dan Talintyre, Head of Communications and Marketing at The Kids’ Cancer Project, it’s akin to seed funding, whereby the organization plays a crucial role in the research ecosystem, linking elite researchers with key funding to get their discoveries off the ground, proving their hypotheses and paving the way for larger government research grants. “Without this seed funding, many of the key clinical trials and early research would struggle to become exposed,” Talintyre says.

Impressive results that fuel more breakthroughs

Since partnering with SAS, The Kids’ Cancer Project has seen a:

• 19.9% increase in regular giving from FY21 to FY25.
• 21.4% growth in childhood cancer research over the last two years.
• 5% increase in gross profit margin from fundraising activities.

In many ways, The Kids’ Cancer Project serves as a vital connector – linking children and families affected by cancer with dedicated supporters and pioneering researchers. A shared vision unites this community: to harness the power of science to fight childhood cancer. Behind it all is a data-driven strategy that ensures every interaction, every donation and every effort makes a measurable difference. It’s what empowers the organization to fund smarter, faster and more compassionate research – leading to more effective, less harmful treatments that give children the best possible chance not just to survive, but to live well.