The Children's Tumor Foundation
07/23/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 07/23/2026 08:05
The 2026 NF Walk Season Is Underway
Families, friends, volunteers, and supporters across the country are lacing up their sneakers as the Children's Tumor Foundation (CTF) launches the 2026 NF Walk season.
The NF Walk brings communities together with one shared purpose: accelerating research and improving the lives of everyone affected by neurofibromatosis and schwannomatosis (NF). Across the country, participants will gather to honor loved ones, celebrate milestones, support one another, and raise critical funds that help drive new treatments forward.
Whether someone is walking because they live with NF, love someone who does, or simply wants to make a difference, every participant plays a role in advancing the Children's Tumor Foundation's mission to drive treatments for NF as we work toward a cure.
A woman standing in front of a pool.
"The NF Walk shows what's possible when a community comes together around a shared purpose. As someone living with NF and helping bring the Dallas NF Walk back this year, I've seen how every team formed, every dollar raised, and every person who shows up creates momentum for research. We're not just walking together, we're investing in the discoveries that will change what's possible for all of us living with NF."
Alexandra Norton
2026 Children's Tumor Foundation National Ambassador and NF Walk Dallas Event Director
More Than a Walk
The NF Walk is one of the Children's Tumor Foundation's largest community fundraising programs, bringing together patients, families, researchers,
A group of people, including children, walk under a blue and green balloon arch outdoors during a community event or fun run.2025 Shine a Light Walk Kansas City
clinicians, volunteers, corporate partners, and local supporters in cities across the United States.
For many families, the Walk is more than an annual event. It's an opportunity to reconnect with friends, meet others who understand the challenges of living with NF, celebrate progress, honor loved ones, and introduce new supporters to the mission.
Each event demonstrates the power of a community working together toward a common goal: accelerating research that leads to better treatments.
What to Expect on Walk Day
Every NF Walk reflects the spirit of its local community, but each event shares the same purpose: bringing people together to move research forward.
Participants can expect a welcoming, family-friendly experience featuring opening ceremonies, team photos, mission moments, activities for children, community partners, and opportunities to connect with other families and supporters. Whether attending for the first time or returning year after year, participants become part of a nationwide movement working to change the future for everyone affected by NF.
Every step taken-and every dollar raised-helps accelerate the next breakthrough.
What is NF?
Neurofibromatosis and schwannomatosis (NF) are a group of genetic conditions that cause tumors to grow on nerves throughout the body. NF affects approximately 1 in every 2,000 births, or an estimated 4 million people worldwide, regardless of race, ethnicity, or gender.
NF can lead to blindness, deafness, bone abnormalities, learning challenges, chronic pain, disfigurement, cancer, and other serious complications. While recent years have brought important advances-including multiple FDA-approved therapies-there is still no cure.
Driving Research Forward
The Children's Tumor Foundation is the global leader in NF research and drug development, working across every stage of the research pipeline to accelerate treatments for people living with NF.
Funds raised through the NF Walk support research grants, emerging investigators, clinical trials, patient registries, collaborative research initiatives, and partnerships with academia, government, and industry. By investing in the entire research ecosystem, the Foundation helps move promising discoveries from the laboratory to clinical trials-and ultimately to patients.
Every dollar raised through the NF Walk helps accelerate the search for better treatments and brings us closer to a future without NF.
Join the Movement
Two women and a young girl walk along a park path. All three wear green shirts, and the girl smiles at the camera. Trees and grass are visible in the background.2025 Shine a Light Walk Atlanta
The 2026 NF Walk season will take place in communities across the United States, including Arizona, Atlanta, the Bay Area, Boston, the Carolinas, Central Valley, Chicagoland, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver, Florida, Houston, Iowa, Kansas City, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Northeast Ohio, Northern Virginia/Fairfax, Philadelphia, Southern California, South Dakota, Utah, and Washington State.
Registration is free. Participants can register as individuals, start or join a team, volunteer, or support the movement through fundraising.
Together, every step taken and every dollar raised is an investment in research that's changing lives
The Children's Tumor Foundation published this content on July 23, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on July 23, 2026 at 14:05 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]