{"id":28748,"date":"2023-04-03T14:20:59","date_gmt":"2023-04-03T14:20:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/?p=25475"},"modified":"2024-11-03T15:12:49","modified_gmt":"2024-11-03T15:12:49","slug":"childrens-cancer-charities-team-up-for-tomorrows-treatments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/childrens-cancer-charities-team-up-for-tomorrows-treatments\/","title":{"rendered":"Children\u2019s cancer charities team up for tomorrow\u2019s treatments"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A<\/div>\n

Children\u2019s cancers present very different challenges to adult ones. So do cancers in teenagers and young people. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

That gets right to the heart of our work. In order to give young people, teenagers and children with cancer the best chance of survival without side effects<\/a>, we have to approach their diseases differently. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Our network of paediatric <\/span>Experimental Cancer Medicine Centres (ECMCs)<\/span><\/a> makes that possible. When conventional treatments aren\u2019t working, ECMCs give children with cancer, as well as young people up to the age of 24, access to trials testing promising new medicines that aren\u2019t available anywhere else. And, in doing so, they help doctors and researchers find more effective and less toxic drugs. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Ultimately, ECMC network trials bring the medicines of the future closer to the children and young people of today.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

And now, for the first time, <\/span>The Little Princess Trust<\/span><\/a> is providing a substantial investment, partnering with us and the devolved health departments \u2013 the National Institute for Health and Care Research, the Chief Scientific Office in Scotland and Health & Social Care Wales \u2013 to help support and develop the network. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

For the 5 years from 1 April 2023, charity and government are contributing a total of \u00a36.6m to the paediatric ECMC network. That\u2019s almost three times the amount from the last 5-year period.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Teiva\u2019s story<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n
Teiva rests after receiving chemotherapy.<\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-1.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-1.jpg” decoding=”async” class=”wp-image-25501 size-thumbnail” src=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-1-150×150.jpg” alt=”Teiva Collins resting during her treatment” width=”150″ height=”150″ srcset=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-1.jpg 150w, https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-1-96×96.jpg 96w” sizes=”(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px”><\/p>

Teiva rests during her cancer treatment. Dawn Collins <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Teiva Collins, 13, was diagnosed with a type of blood cancer called <\/span>acute lymphoblastic leukaemia<\/span> (ALL) in 2019. She has finished her chemotherapy treatment but still faces ongoing challenges due to its side effects. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Teiva has received the Cancer Research UK for Children & Young People Star Award and is also an Ambassador for The Little Princess Trust. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Her mum Dawn said: \u201cWe welcome anything that might help other families in the future, and it is good to see Cancer Research UK and The Little Princess Trust working together. More clinical trials are needed so that treatments can improve. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTeiva has always shown incredible courage and bravery, with a smile on her face, and such politeness for all of the doctors and nurses, but the ongoing issues are taking their toll. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Teiva has finished chemotherapy, but is still dealing with its side effects.<\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-2.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-2.jpg” decoding=”async” loading=”lazy” class=”wp-image-25502 size-thumbnail” src=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-2-150×150.jpg” alt=”Teiva Collins holding her dog” width=”150″ height=”150″ srcset=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-2.jpg 150w, https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/Teiva-image-2-96×96.jpg 96w” sizes=”(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px”><\/p>

Teiva has finished treatment, but is still dealing with side effects. Dawn Collins <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cSo many things have happened to her to knock her down \u2013 adrenal gland problems, COVID, constant nausea, gastrological problems, pain in her legs and feet, and much more besides. We are still investigating the issues she is facing and as a mum I will always worry. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTeiva, from the very beginning, was keen to be open and honest about her cancer, so we started an Instagram page to document her journey and raise awareness for charities that have been hugely helpful and supportive. We couldn\u2019t be more proud of her.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe hope that this funding will help bring about progress.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

How will this help children and young people with cancer?<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

With the extra money, the ECMC network will expand to include a new centre in Cardiff. That means fewer children and young people in Wales will need to travel to England to receive experimental treatments. Trial designs will get more patient-friendly, too \u2013 with the network supporting tests and scans at local hospitals as well as the 12 ECMCs. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

The new funding will also pay for the development of a data platform that brings together all the information we can gather about people\u2019s individual cancers. Doctors will be able to use it to match patients to the trials that are most likely to help them. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Plus, over the next 5 years, the ECMC network will also be focusing on using its data to improve how we use established drugs. By monitoring how patients who are \u2018hard to treat\u2019 respond to cancer medicines, the sites will be able to work out the best ways doctors across the country can care for understudied groups like newborn and premature babies. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

And, of course, the money will also ensure the network can train and employ more of the specialist nurses, researchers and data managers it needs to carry out innovative clinical trials built around the needs of patients. With new specialists at every site storing and processing patient samples, it will be easier for every study to leave a legacy that improves future treatments, too.<\/span><\/p>\n

In other words: there\u2019s a lot happening. To better understand what all this could mean for the 4,200 children and young people diagnosed with cancer every year in the UK, we spoke to two researchers whose pioneering trials have been supported by the paediatric ECMC network.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Making trials easier for patients and families<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

Guy Makin, a paediatric oncologist and senior lecturer at Manchester University NHS Trust, has helped steer the paediatric ECMC network for over a decade. He\u2019s not taking credit for its achievements, though. The secret to success in treating children\u2019s cancers has always been teamwork.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s not many children with cancer in the UK, and less than 20% of them are ever going to need experimental treatments,\u201d he explains. \u201cAnd that means the number of children who can take part in trials is quite low. So, <\/span>we all want to put our patients into the same trials, because we all want to know what the best treatment is.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

For that to happen, trials need to be as visible, accessible and patient-friendly as possible. That takes planning. Before the ECMC network launched, many trials were only open at a single (often London-based) site, which made joining difficult for people who didn\u2019t live locally. Now, though, every trial is open in at least one centre in each of the network\u2019s 4 regional areas.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Over the coming years, that \u2018decentralised\u2019 structure will strengthen the connections between the network and the rest of the health system. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to make sure that we can deliver these trials with as little disruption as possible to maximise the number of patients who join,\u201d Makin says. \u201cIf having to travel for a scan or a test is a barrier for a family, then let\u2019s do it locally.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Families are the experts in what works best for them. That\u2019s why the ECMCs are also expanding their work with parents and patient representatives. Their input helps make trials as easy and accessible as possible for children and young people \u2013 no matter who they are, where they live, or what cancer they have. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Giving doctors the data they need<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

There\u2019s another side to this, too. Even medical professionals sometimes need help keeping track of trials. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Across each of its regions, the ECMC network has established a formal process for doctors to get together and discuss the best options for young patients who relapse or don\u2019t respond to established treatments. It ensures doctors across the country are aware of the trials their patients can join.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBefore, that was quite a barrier,\u201d Makin adds. \u201cPeople just wouldn\u2019t know about the trials that were open.\u201d That slowed recruitment, meaning it could take longer for effective drugs to become standard treatments for children\u2019s cancers. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

These ECMC \u2018relapse panels\u2019 are also fully integrated with our Stratified Medicine Paediatrics (StratMedPaeds) study<\/a>. Using advanced information from tumour samples, StratMedPaeds matches young patients to the experimental treatments most likely to help them.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s been very, very successful,\u201d says Makin, who stresses that it wouldn\u2019t be possible without ECMC network-funded research nurses. \u201cWe\u2019ve managed to go from not really having any information at all about tumours at the time of relapse, to molecular profiles for over 600 patients.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

So far, these profiles, which are generated at the Royal Marsden in London, have been shared and discussed with doctors in online meetings. Now, though, the tests we can do on patient samples are beginning to provide more useful information than it\u2019s possible to cover in a Zoom call. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to have a better way of managing it than just a meeting,\u201d Makin points out, \u201cso we now have funding to develop a data integration platform that links everything together.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe doctor will be able to see that for <\/span>this <\/span><\/i>patient, at <\/span>this <\/span><\/i>point in their disease process, <\/span>this <\/span><\/i>is the best type of treatment, and it\u2019s available through trials at <\/span>these<\/span><\/i> ECMCs.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Doing more for the very youngest children with cancer<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

The data collected by the paediatric ECMC network isn\u2019t just relevant for trials of new drugs. It can also improve how we use established treatments. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s thanks to a collaboration with the Newcastle Cancer Centre Pharmacology Group (NCCPG)<\/a>, led by Professor Gareth Veal. Their work is also funded by us, The Little Princess Trust and the National Institute for Health and Care Research.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

The NCCPG\u2019s \u2018therapeutic drug monitoring\u2019 service looks at how anticancer drugs work in patients that are difficult to treat. This can include infants and premature babies, children and young people with kidney problems or obesity, and those who need particularly high doses of chemotherapy. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re giving doses, monitoring what happens, and then adjusting to make sure we get the dose that\u2019s actually correct, rather than too little, which won\u2019t be effective, or too much, which will cause too many side effects,\u201d explains Makin. \u201cAnd, because we collect all that information, the NCCPG can use it to model what will work for other patients and come up with guidelines.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

These guidelines are already helping doctors outside the ECMC network make the best decisions for their own young patients. Over the next 5 years, this work will be expanded to cover more drugs and tumour types, and the guidelines will be developed into an online tool that will make the whole dosing and monitoring process much easier.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Improving immunotherapy for children and young people<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

But ECMCs also test drugs with the potential to completely change how we treat cancer in children and young people.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Dr Sara Ghorashian specialises in some of those medicines. She works at Great Ormond Street Hospital and University College London. Her clinical trials focus on using <\/span>immunotherapy<\/span><\/a> to treat <\/span>leukaemia<\/span><\/a>.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Immunotherapies work by guiding our immune systems to fight cancer. Ghorashian\u2019s main interest is in a type called <\/span>CAR T-cell therapy<\/span><\/a>, where doctors take immune cells from patients and modify them so they can recognise cancer cells. When they\u2019re put back, <\/span>these altered T-cells guide the immune system to attack cancers that it couldn\u2019t even see before<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

CAR-T cells are tuned to target cancer cells.<\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/T-cell-attacking-cancer-cell-illustration-small.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/T-cell-attacking-cancer-cell-illustration-small.jpg” decoding=”async” loading=”lazy” class=” size-thumbnail wp-image-24847″ src=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/T-cell-attacking-cancer-cell-illustration-small-150×150.jpg” alt=”A 3D illustration of a CAR-T cell approaching a cancer cell” width=”150″ height=”150″ srcset=”https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/T-cell-attacking-cancer-cell-illustration-small-150×150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/T-cell-attacking-cancer-cell-illustration-small-96×96.jpg 96w, https:\/\/news.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/T-cell-attacking-cancer-cell-illustration-small.jpg 200w” sizes=”(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px”><\/p>

CAR T-cells are tuned to target cancer cells. Design_Cells \/ Shutterstock.com <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

That\u2019s a very complicated and difficult process. CAR T-cells have already changed how we treat some children\u2019s cancers \u2013 <\/span>the NHS now uses them<\/span><\/a> to help some children who, like Teiva, are affected by ALL \u2013 but it can take a lot of very precise and expensive testing to make sure they work well for as many people as possible. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

So, Ghorashian has been thinking about how to make CAR T-cell trials easier. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to go back to the drawing board again and again before you get something that works,\u201d she explains, \u201cand the only way that you\u2019re going to know what\u2019s going to work is if you collect relevant samples. They\u2019re how you understand how to make the therapy better.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Early phase immune therapy studies are often very expensive to run, so it can be difficult to cover the cost of collecting and storing key samples for the longer term. <\/span>That\u2019s where the ECMC network is stepping in.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEvery large immunotherapy centre can now have a full-time person to bank samples, which can be used to improve the immunotherapies in the next generation of trials,\u201d says Ghorashian. \u201cIt\u2019s a relatively small amount of resource, but the potential to create a biobank of samples that are relevant to these early phase clinical studies is huge.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

The difference a trial can make<\/span> <\/span><\/h2>\n

Ghorashian\u2019s team is currently working hard to optimise new types of CAR T-cell therapies for ALL. They\u2019re trying to improve outcomes for patients receiving immunotherapy, and they\u2019re showing why ECMC support is so important. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve known for a while that, to work best against ALL, CAR T-cells need to stay in the body for a long time.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt means that you can deliver the CAR T-cell therapy on its own, and you don\u2019t have to keep on treating the kids with other toxic treatments like bone marrow transplants,\u201d Ghorashian explains.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

But there\u2019s no shortcut to making long-lasting CAR T-cells. Good research can take a long time \u2013 especially if researchers don\u2019t have a smooth way of transitioning from one trial into the next. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Ghorashian\u2019s team had that transition. It\u2019s helped them find new approaches to some of the biggest challenges in CAR T-cell therapy. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe did another study before, which was less successful, but the lessons we learned from it were absolutely invaluable,\u201d she says.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

With the support of the ECMC network, other immunotherapy researchers will have the same opportunity to build on previous trials. Even apparently unsuccessful studies will play a role in developing safer and more effective ways to help young cancer patients.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe ECMC funding makes it feasible to run expensive clinical studies,\u201d says Ghorashian.<\/span> \u201cWe can do little things to manage the toxicity or improve how we deliver the cells, and something that didn\u2019t work can start making a difference.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

The differences she\u2019s talking about can save lives. They can also make lives easier to live \u2013 free from side effects like hearing loss, organ damage and infertility. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s 5 years of those differences ahead.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tim<\/em><\/p>\n

You can find out more about the trials run through the ECMC network using our Find a Clinical Trial<\/a> service.<\/div>\n

More on this topic<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Children\u2019s cancers present very different challenges to adult ones. So do cancers in teenagers and young people. That gets right to the heart of our work. In order to give young people, teenagers and children with cancer the best chance of survival without side effects, we have to approach their diseases differently. Our network of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5137],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28748","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28748","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28748"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28748\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43003,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28748\/revisions\/43003"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}