CAC2 Childhood Cancer Community News Digest (April 10-16)

Assorted News from the Last Week: Cancer researchers continue to make progress in developing tests using liquid biopsies for pediatric solid tumors that could complement and even serve as an alternative to traditional tissue biopsies. Researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have outlined opportunities for achieving President Biden and First Lady Biden’s Cancer Moonshot℠ national goal of reducing the cancer death rate by at least 50% over the next 25 years. In this Q&A, NCI Director Monica Bertagnolli, M.D., and Deputy Director for Clinical and Translational Research James H. Doroshow, M.D., talk about the challenges of clinical trials [...] Read more

CAC2 Childhood Cancer Community News Digest (April 3-9)

Assorted News from the Last Week: From the Journal of Clinical Oncology:  "An optimized, agreed approach to the design and evaluation of early-phase pediatric combination trials will accelerate drug development and benefit all stakeholders, most importantly children and adolescents with cancer." Findings, published today in Nature Medicine, have led to a major amendment in a phase 3 Children’s Oncology Group (COG) clinical trial, which has incorporated lorlatinib for newly diagnosed ALK-driven high-risk neuroblastoma, as well as a planned amendment to the European phase 3 trial in collaboration with the International Society of Paediatric Oncology European Neuroblastoma (SIOPEN). Immunotherapy with a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) [...] Read more

CAC2 Childhood Cancer Community News Digest (March 27-April 2)

Assorted News from the Last Week: Melissa Jackson joins the Coalition Against Childhood Cancer as its new Executive Director. NCI Director Monica Bertagnolli announced the rollout of the National Cancer Plan which provides a comprehensive framework for this meaningful collaboration and unites us in acting on the vision President Biden and First Lady Biden set out in the Cancer Moonshot℠.. The Coalition Against Childhood Cancer will hold its 2023 Annual Summit.  Hosted by Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and presented by Day One Biopharmaceuticals, this annual event reflects the CAC2 values and mission by providing top-notch educational programming, designing multiple opportunities [...] Read more

CAC2 News–Presenting Melissa Jackson, CAC2 Executive Director

By CAC2 Chair Amy Godkin (ASK Foundation) We are thrilled to share the good news that Melissa Jackson is joining CAC2 as our new Executive Director.  Melissa brings five years of experience working with the childhood cancer community and a passion for helping young patients and their families. Most recently, she served as a Parent Consultant for the Ohio Department of Health. Melissa represented and amplified the parent perspective within the Child and Family Health Bureau and the Maternal and Infant Vitality Bureau. In addition, she managed Ohio’s Annual Childhood Cancer Summit and led Ohio’s Childhood Cancer Workgroup. Her accomplishments include founding and leading [...] Read more

CAC2 Childhood Cancer Community News Digest (March 20-26)

Assorted News from the Last Week: Findings from a cohort study published in JAMA Network Open found that survivors of childhood cancer who lived in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas or had modifiable chronic health conditions were associated with an increased risk for death 5 years or more following the diagnosis of pediatric cancer. Injectable methotrexate, cisplatin, and fluorouracil are all in shortage, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP). The FDA has granted an orphan drug designation to FORE8394 for the treatment of primary brain and central nervous system (CNS) malignancies, according to an announcement from Fore Biotherapeutics. ETV6 [...] Read more

CAC2 Childhood Cancer Community News Digest (March 13-19)

Assorted News from the Last Week: Results from a new study show that giving a drug called dexrazoxane (Zinecard) before each dose of doxorubicin substantially decreases the risk that childhood cancer survivors will have treatment-related heart problems in adulthood.   Keeping track of pediatric cancer survival and cure fraction estimation may be key in assessing advances in care for the population, according to findings from the EUROCARE-6 study with results published in The Lancet Oncology. The FDA has granted an orphan drug designation to EP0042 for use as a potential therapeutic option in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with [...] Read more

CAC2 Childhood Cancer Community News Digest (March 6-12)

Assorted News from the Last Week: This year's Grand Challenge includes a focus on pediatric solid tumors!  One of the nine announced challenges seeks to identify new therapies that target drivers of solid tumors in children, to improve survival and reduce the lifelong side effects caused by existing treatments.  Read about all nine challenges. Summary of the current state of the field of focused ultrasound for DIPG/DMG, including preclinical, technical, and clinical summaries in addition to recommended next steps for continued advancement of the game changing technology of Focused Ultrasound. People with a third copy of chromosome 21, known as [...] Read more

Make Your Voice Heard Alliance for Childhood Cancer Action Days 2023

We learned more about the Alliance for Childhood Cancer Action Days, which is returning to Washington, D.C., this year for the first time since 2019. Action Days allows you to speak with your members of Congress and their staff to advocate for important childhood cancer issues before Congress. Sharing your story will ensure the voice of kids with cancer is heard loud and clear on Capitol Hill. Click here for more information about Action Days April 24-25, 2023. Make Your Voice Heard PowerPoint Action-Days-2023-Webinar-CAC2 Sarah Milberg Sarah Milberg is the Director of Government Relations and Advocacy for the St. Baldrick's [...] Read more

CAC2 Childhood Cancer Community News Digest (February 27-March 5)

Assorted News from the Last Week: In March last year, the CCDI Molecular Characterization Initiative (MCI) launched. Since then, it has opened enrollment to children, adolescents, and young adults newly diagnosed with central nervous system tumors, soft tissue sarcomas, and rare tumors—with plans to expand. Results have been returned to more than 750 participants. Prediction models for kidney failure in long-term survivors of childhood cancer Researchers have developed a new drug delivery approach that uses nanoparticles to enable more effective and targeted delivery of anti-cancer drugs to treat brain tumors in children National Cancer Institute (NCI) is launching a first-of-its-kind, [...] Read more

Guest Blog–Molecular Characterization Initiative (MCI) Continues to Enroll

In March last year, the CCDI Molecular Characterization Initiative (MCI) launched. Since then, it has opened enrollment to children, adolescents, and young adults newly diagnosed with central nervous system tumors, soft tissue sarcomas, and rare tumors—with plans to expand. Results have been returned to more than 750 participants. Data released from the initiative are searchable through the database of Genotypes and Phenotypes and Seven Bridges’ Cancer Genomics Cloud. See Where Can These Data Be Accessed? on the MCI web page for more information about access. Enrollment continues and participation is free. Potential participants must also be receiving care from a […]

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