Our Impact
Boston Children’s Hospital has been quietly changing the future of health for every child, here and around the world, since 1869. Named the number one hospital for care in the country, we are also the largest research center for pediatric medicine anywhere. Each year the conference proceeds benefit a new research initiative at Boston Children’s Hospital, as well as unique collaborations between Boston Children’s and the Broad Institute. Since inception in 2012, the Boston Investment Conference has generated more than $29M to accelerate the most promising research aimed at better treatments for sick children in the near term.
2026 Boston Investment Conference Awardee
Pedro J. del Nido, MD, Chairman, Department of Cardiac Surgery
William E. Ladd Professor of Child Surgery, Harvard Medical School
Building a better mitral valve for children
Mitral valve disease affects hundreds of thousands of children around the world. Some are born with inherited or congenital valve defects; others develop mitral valve damage after rheumatic heart disease, a preventable infection-related illness that kills about 300,000 people each year. Many children live with damaged mitral valves, but without effective treatment the condition can progressively weaken the heart and soon becomes life-threatening. Yet the available replacement devices are designed for adults and often do not work for pediatric patients because of children’s size, anatomy, and ongoing growth, thus limiting their long-term survival.
Pedro J. del Nido, MD, has dedicated his career to solving exactly these kinds of challenges. A distinguished surgeon and innovator in pediatric heart repair, he leads a clinical and engineering team at Boston Children’s Hospital focused on creating devices designed specifically for children rather than adapting adult technologies that fall short. His work is driven by a simple but powerful idea: children with valve disease need solutions built for their bodies, their futures, and the realities of care around the world.
Now, Dr. del Nido and his colleagues have developed a promising new mitral valve replacement prototype that could transform treatment for children with both congenital and acquired mitral valve failure. The device is designed to be durable, expandable to accommodate child’s growth, and low cost, with the potential to expand access to lifesaving care for children in low-resource countries, where the burden of rheumatic heart disease is highest. Just as important, it is engineered to mimic the shape and function of the natural human mitral valve—an approach that promises to improve durability and reduce complications compared with existing options.
The prototype is based on the novel material used in the lab’s successful expandable pulmonary valve, reflecting years of focused innovation in pediatric-specific heart devices. This material may also reduce the need for anticoagulation therapy, potentially sparing children from lifelong blood-thinning medication and intensive monitoring. For families and health systems alike, that could mean safer treatment, improved survival, fewer burdens, and better long-term quality of life.
Dr. del Nido is uniquely positioned to lead this work. Under his leadership, Boston Children’s Department of Cardiac Surgery performs more than 1,000 surgeries each year, including some of the most difficult and rare pediatric cases. A former Translational Research Program awardee, his department has pioneered advances ranging from 3D modeling for surgical planning to improved monitoring and recovery techniques that enhance outcomes for children and families. He also brings a deep commitment to global health and medical education, training clinicians around the world and helping extend pediatric cardiac expertise far beyond Boston. More than half of the leaders of pediatric cardiovascular programs in the United States trained at Boston Children’s.
Support from the Boston Investment Conference will help move this project toward the clinic by funding rigorous benchtop testing, pre-clinical studies, manufacturing refinement, and production scale-up. With this support, Dr. del Nido expects to advance toward FDA approval and early first-in-human studies within two years. This innovative work could reshape treatment for mitral valve disease on a global scale—and offer children a future with better options, fewer complications, and longer, healthier lives.
