Big pay-off in child cancer drug quest
TOWNSVILLE children with deadly brain tumours will have local access to a powerful new trial drug as part of a father’s quest to honour his daughter.
After standing in front of doctors with his seven-yearold daughter Amy 10 years ago, Wren Pedersen recalls his desperation to save his daughter after being told there was nothing on the table for treatment options.
“It’s an empty feeling to be told just go home and watch your child die,” Mr Pedersen said.
“These brain stem tumours affect every facet of the body.
“We watched Amy lose her ability to walk and talk, everything.”
Mr Pedersen leapt into protection mode that day and hasn’t stopped crusading for a cure for brain cancer, which kills more Australian children than any other form of cancer.
Amy’s brave battle exceeded the life expectancy attached to such a dire prognosis and passed away 16 months later at age nine, almost double the time most families have to make lasting memories.
“Soon after Amy passed away we started our quest to empower medical practitioners,” Mr Pedersen said.
“We couldn’t even donate Amy’s brain for research at the time because there was no medical research.”
Thanks to medical advancement this option later became available to other heartbroken families and the Nsw-based Coade family made the brave decision to donate their fouryear-old daughter Lilliana's tumour in 2010.
“We made a promise to her that she wouldn’t have to have it (the tumour) anymore,” Rachael Coade said.
“If that donation helps save one life that's enough.”
Through A Cure Starts Now, Mr Pederson has devoted his life to helping other families faced with the same battle. A decade later he’s proud to have helped fund cancer research to deliver the groundbreaking drug known as ACT001.
“A Cure Starts Now funded the machine that correlated this drug compound,” Mr Pedersen said. “Now oncologists and specialists can look parents in the eye and say they’ve got options.”
ACT001 is offered as part of a chemotherapy regimen made possible by the Brain Cancer Mission, who donated $5 million to help cover costs of providing the potentially lifesaving treatment.
A clinical trial was done at the Sydney Children's Hospital late last year and will now be rolled out Queensland wide to oncology wards like Townsville, which are equipped to provide the care. “The best way to make a difference is to give the caregivers a chance to save these children,” Mr Pedersen said.