BrainChild Bio raised $116 million in Series A funding to advance its autologous CAR-T program for pediatric brainstem tumors, with a pivotal registrational trial already underway. The company’s lead program BCB-276 targets B7-H3 (CD276) and is being studied in an FDA Fast Track-designated, open-label, single-arm Phase II ILLUMINATE trial in newly diagnosed diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). BrainChild said dosing is planned every two weeks for up to 15 doses after focal radiation therapy, and the primary endpoint is overall survival. The financing includes participation from Seattle Children’s and WRF Capital, among other backers, supporting manufacturing, quality, and regulatory work required to run registration-oriented trials in multiple U.S. pediatric neuro-oncology centers. For the CAR-T field, the round underscores investor appetite for neurologic CAR-T strategies tailored to CNS indications where competition has historically been limited.