The $6.7 million grant, awarded to Dr James Antaki and his team at Cornell University on 30 March, was meant to support the next phase of development for the PediaFlow device. The battery-sized pump is designed to help newborns with congenital heart defects survive until they can undergo surgery or receive a transplant.
But on 8 April, the department of defense issued a stop-work order, effectively cancelling the funding without offering a reason. The research team now faces an uncertain future, with Antaki warning that staff layoffs and a halt in development are likely if new funding isn’t secured within 90 days.
“It’s hard to accept,” Antaki told NBC News. “This is more than a project — it’s a mission. We’re doing this for the children.”
The cancellation is one of several abrupt funding withdrawals linked to broader cost-cutting measures introduced by US president Donald Trump’s revived administration. The department of government efficiency, overseen by Elon Musk, has led the charge in slashing academic and scientific grants deemed “non-essential.”
Medical professionals have expressed alarm at the move. “This device has enormous potential,” said Dr Evan Zahn, a paediatric cardiologist. “Losing this funding is a real setback for paediatric medicine.”
Roughly 1 in 100 babies are born with heart defects in the US each year. With ongoing research, Antaki believes PediaFlow could offer hope to thousands of families — but only if the work is allowed to continue.
