Assorted news from the last week: Children with birth defects who were conceived via in vitro fertilization (IVF) were more likely to develop childhood cancer compared to those conceived naturally, according to the results of a cohort study originating at Michigan State University. The likelihood of cancer survivors developing a new, unrelated malignancy is “about 10 to 20 percent higher” than someone in the general population. The insurance dropout rate among adolescents and young adult cancer survivors may have been lowered due to the dependent coverage provision in the Affordable Care Act, according to the findings of a new study […]

Assorted news from the last week: This year’s Cancer Grand Challenges (funded by Cancer Research UK and the National Cancer Institute) include a category for Solid Tumors in Children. Contract Research Organization PRA Health Sciences published a white paper encouraging industry sponsors to identify, seek out, and partner with patient organizations as they try to meet the demands of the RACE for Children Act. OncoHeroes BioSciences announced that its therapeutic Volasertib received Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat pediatric rhabdomyosarcoma and other rare soft tissue sarcomas. Cooking up Change launched this  video and a […]

Assorted news from the last week: Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have genetically modified human NKT cells with a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) that enables them to specifically recognize and attack neuroblastoma, a form of childhood cancer. In a recent Journal of Clinical Oncology article, members from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA) expressed the need for trial sponsors to coordinate their submissions of initial pediatric study plans (iPSP) and pediatric investigation plans (PIP) with regulatory authorities in order to facilitate pediatric cancer drug […]

Assorted news from the last week: Twenty percent of children treated with drugs called anthracyclines go on to suffer heart failure later in life.  Dr. Greg Aune explores why. Research to develop a new treatment and bring a new drug to market is extremely expensive, and conventional methods for obtaining funding aren’t adequate. New funding models can help disease-focused nonprofit research foundations play a central role in raising capital and mobilizing an ecosystem focused on controlling and curing a disease. The U.S. Senate unanimously passed S.Res.742 – A Senate Resolution designating September as National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.  Senators Manchin […]