Alex Scott’s childhood wish began with a simple idea: sell lemonade so doctors could help kids with cancer, writes CBS News.

More than two decades later, that wish is still shaping pediatric cancer research, and this week it has a fresh moment in the spotlight.

A Wish Rooted in Wynnewood

Alex was diagnosed with neuroblastoma just before her first birthday. The family moved to Wynnewood so she could continue treatment at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

At age 4, she held her first lemonade stand, with help from her older brother, to raise money for her hospital. Her goal was never just to help herself. She insisted the money support children facing all types of cancer, not only her own.

That spirit became the foundation for Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, the nonprofit her parents, Liz and Jay Scott, launched after Alex’s effort inspired families nationwide to host their own stands.

The foundation has since raised nearly $400 million and funded more than 1,500 research grants.

Doctors Who Knew Her Best

The foundation’s work is helping fund research that doctors say is changing the field.

Dr. John Maris and Dr. Yael Mosse, two of Alex’s doctors, recalled her as determined, thoughtful, and unusually focused on helping other children even as she faced her own illness.

Maris said the foundation has made what he called a huge impact across the field of childhood cancer research.

From Discovery to a Second Chance

That mission has helped support major advances in pediatric cancer treatment.

Mosse is a leader in neuroblastoma research. She was part of a team whose discovery led to a therapy now helping cure some children and giving others more time with their families.

One family who has seen that firsthand is Edie Gilger and her mother, Emily. Edie was diagnosed with neuroblastoma at six months old.

She ran out of treatment options before a foundation-funded clinical trial, run by Mosse, helped clear her cancer.

Years later, Emily was diagnosed with the same rare disease and entered the same trial. Mosse called the outcome for both of them a home run.

What Comes Next

Researchers are also working on a new class of drugs called degraders, which could target and clear cancer-causing gene mutations rather than simply blocking them.

Mosse said the approach could be a major step forward in treating cancers driven by the ALK gene.

A Movement That Keeps Growing

What began with one child’s lemonade stand has become a national movement that started in Wynnewood and now runs out of Bala Cynwyd. CBS Philadelphia marks that legacy this week with its 20th annual Alex Scott: A Stand for Hope Telethon.

It airs Wednesday from 6 AM to 8 PM, as Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation continues turning her dream into measurable progress for children with cancer.

To learn more about the legacy of Alex’s Lemonade Stand, visit CBS News Philadelphia.