Study could transform way childhood cancers are understood
£1 MILLION FUNDING FROM CHARITIES INTO UNIVERSITY INVESTIGATION
A GROUNDBREAKING study led by Newcastle scientists could transform doctors’ understanding of childhood cancers, thanks to a new fund aiming to save the lives of the youngest cancer patients.
Christine Harrison, Professor of Childhood Cancer Cytogenetics at Newcastle University Centre for Cancer, is one of a group of scientists awarded just short of £1m by Cancer Research UK, as part of its Children with Cancer UK Innovation Awards.
Prof Harrison’s study, co-funded by Children with Cancer UK, is set to explore a phenomenon whose presence can help doctors predict how well children hit by cancer will respond to treatment.
Among some young cancer patients, particularly acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) and medulloblastoma, a type of brain tumour, doctors often find aneuploidy – the presence of either more or less than the usual 46 chromosomes in a cell.
Prof Harrison’s team have set out to find out why this occurs, and if it can be used to help find new treatments for childhood cancer patients – or even prevent some cancers from developing.
Aneuploidy happens in around 60% of children with ALL, but why it happens isn’t well understood.
The scientists, also including Professor Jonathan Higgins, who specialises in chromosome biology, and Professor Steve Clifford, who specialises in childhood brain tumour development, at Newcastle University, intend to explore the question further using a range of new approaches.
They hope this research will, in turn, help identify new ways to treat and possibly even prevent these types of cancer.
Prof Harrison, who lives near Morpeth, said: “The results from this study have the potential to improve our understanding of cancer in a way that may eventually help scientists identify children at greater risk of developing aneuploidy, allowing for better monitoring of those individuals.
“They may also lead to us discovering new ways to treat these types of cancer and potentially prevent certain cancers from developing in the first place.”
Professor Harrison’s work has already changed the treatment children with ALL receive, improving their survival, and this new study, which is the first of its kind, hopes to pave the way for better outcomes for children with cancer.
Professor Harrison said: “Newcastle is really well positioned for this kind of research as we have access to patient samples from the children’s hospital and a wealth of expertise at the university to support the work, such as that of Professor Higgins and Professor Clifford.
“But we are ever conscious of the enormous support of fundraisers that allow grants like this to be awarded permitting us to make these important steps. I’m constantly in awe of the dedication of supporters and the work they do in order for us to be able to carry out our research. This commitment motivates us and spurs us on to succeed.”
The study is one of five research projects across the UK to receive up to £1m each from the Cancer Research UK-Children with Cancer UK Innovation Awards. Funding for these projects totals £4.3m and signifies a much-needed boost for research into children’s and young people’s cancer, Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said.
It’s a vital issue, because, despite improvements in overall survival over the last 40 years, cancer remains the leading cause of death by disease in children and young people (aged one-24) in the UK. Some of these cancers still have low survival rates and many who survive are left with serious longterm side effects.
It’s hoped the research grants will help researchers better understand the complex biology of cancer in children, which is generally very different to the disease in adults.
Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said: “We’ve listened to both parents and researchers and their concerns about lack of progress for children’s and young people’s cancers...We are thrilled to be working with Children with Cancer UK in co-funding the Innovation Awards. This funding represents the dawning of a new age of investment into cancers that affect children and young people, and the awards are a key part of our research strategy.
“We hope this funding boost will build momentum in the field to improve our understanding of these types of cancer and ultimately lead to fewer children and young people losing their lives to this disease.”