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Assorted News from the Last Week: For many patients, one of the most antagonizing parts of a hospital visit is paying for parking. Those parking fees aren’t just an annoyance for the sick and injured, according to a new paper in the Journal of Medical Imaging and Radiation Sciences. The charges are actually eating into their financial well-being, particularly for people who have cancer and have to make frequent visits to the hospital for treatments like radiation and chemotherapy. Children diagnosed with diffuse midline gliomas often die within a year after their initial diagnosis since there are no effective treatments yet [...] Read more

Assorted News from the Last Week: "I’d like to introduce you to Josh. . .  Josh, a sound engineer, is also a childhood cancer survivor who lives with profound hearing loss. Josh has a deep love of music. It has been a constant struggle for most of his life. The side effects of chemotherapy treatment robbed him of quality of life." High radiosensitivity of the meninges was observed in pediatric patients with cancer treated before 10 years of age, supporting the use of reduced dose whole brain irradiation and the prioritization of approaches that limit radiation exposure in healthy tissue, [...] Read more

Assorted News from the Last Week: CAC2 Member Mary Beth Collins explains the importance of the new FDA approval of Pedmark:  "With the FDA’s recent approval of Pedmark (an injectable formulation of sodium thiosulfate ("STS"), children are protected from cisplatin’s ototoxicity.  This development is substantial for children in treatment because it maintains their hearing, providing a better quality of life." Hayley Arceneaux became the youngest American to go to space last year after she spent three days in orbit on Space-X's Inspiration rocket. She is telling her story in a new book. Pediatric patients who receive central nervous system (CNS)-directed treatment for [...] Read more

Assorted News from the Last Week: CAC2 Member Joe Baber reflects on the Gabriella Miller Kids First 2.0 legislation pending in Congress:  "We’re all thankful when there are lifesaving therapies and at the very same time, we are fearful of relapse, side effects of the drugs, chemotherapy, radiation, surgery and even death.  These contrary and parallel emotions seem to be linked in partnership throughout the childhood cancer experience." This month, Dr. Gregory Reaman was named by the Childhood Cancer Data Initiative (CCDI) as the new Scientific Director. In this role, Dr. Reaman will develop, direct, and coordinate CCDI programs and [...] Read more

Assorted News from the Last Week: The FDA has approved brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris) in combination with doxorubicin, vincristine, etoposide, prednisone, and cyclophosphamide (AVE-PC) in pediatric patients aged 2 years and older with previously untreated, high-risk classical Hodgkin lymphoma.  Read more:  Administration of a targeted therapy for children with high-risk Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) was found to significantly decrease relapse rates in a large multicenter clinical trial conducted by the Children’s Oncology Group (COG) and published in The New England Journal of Medicine. Researchers have used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to engineer donor T cells to try to treat seriously ill children with resistant [...] Read more

Assorted News from the Last Week: November is National Family Caregivers Month.  The President Joe Biden honored family caregivers for all they do for the nation with a Presidential Proclamation. "No one should have to choose between a paycheck and looking after a loved one. My Administration is committed to easing that squeeze on working families and getting caregivers the resources and respect they deserve. The Department of Health and Human Services’ National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers outlines nearly 350 actions the Federal Government can take to support family caregivers’ health, well-being, and financial security. Our American Rescue Plan [...] Read more

Assorted News from the Last Week: CBS "Sunday Morning" contributor Kelefa Sanneh talked with CAC2 Members Kari and Tom Whitehead and their daughter Emily about how they defeated her cancer and were joined by Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, a leading cancer specialist and author of the new book, "The Song of the Cell: An Exploration of Medicine and the New Human." CAC2 Member Cindy Campbell and her family spoke with NBC News’ Tom Llamas to tell the story of how the Campbell family has spent the past decade honoring their son’s life and legacy through a foundation in his name to raise [...] Read more

Assorted News from the Last Week: Nearly one in four families of pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) enrolled in a clinical trial experienced food insecurity, and almost half of the families eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) did not receive benefits. In addition, receiving SNAP benefits was not sufficient to address food insecurity. Patients who undergo radiotherapy for the treatment of childhood cancer have an increased risk of developing meningioma later in life, and that risk may persist for 30 years, according to a case-control study published in JAMA Oncology. The incidence of invasive breast cancer […]

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Assorted News from the Last Week: Pedmark (sodium thiosulfate) is now available to reduce the risk of ototoxicity associated with cisplatin in pediatric patients 1 month of age and older with localized, nonmetastatic solid tumors. Pediatric patients with cancer and those who have undergone hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) may develop long-term effects, including fatigue. However, fatigue is not associated with treatment intensity or therapy type, according to findings published in the Journal of Child Health Care. Real-world costs for care for commercially insured U.S. pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) were higher in those diagnosed at age 10 [...] Read more

Assorted News from the Last Week: Helping kids manage fear and anxiety when they have a serious illness Public sharing of pediatric brain cancer presentation prepared for House Health Subcommittee supporting H. Res. 404 New findings show more than 32,000 newly diagnosed adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients may lose or face compromised fertility preservation care each year due to legislation that has been enacted or is expected to be enacted in some states. Despite decades of medical advances, children who develop the pediatric eye cancer retinoblastoma often lose their vision or an eye due to a lack of […]

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