Great hope for children: £1.5m for new brain tumor immunotherapy

Great hope for children: £1.5m for new brain tumor immunotherapy

There is new hope in the fight against the treacherous ependymomas, one of the most common forms of brain tumors in children. An international team of researchers today received generous funding of 1.5 million British pounds from the Brain Tumor Charity UK to develop an innovative immunotherapy. This initiative could represent a significant advance in the treatment of tumors with a high risk of relapse and resistance to conventional chemotherapy. The urgency of researching new treatment approaches is evident given the great need for effective therapies that can significantly improve the quality of life of affected children.

A network of highly respected institutions is involved in this promising research, including the Hopp Children's Tumor Center Heidelberg (KITZ), the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the Heidelberg Medical Faculty, the Heidelberg University Hospital (UKHD), the Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health in London and the Princess Máxima Center in Utrecht. This collaboration alone brings together in-depth expertise from different disciplines to achieve the goals.

Innovative approaches to therapy

The planned approach focuses on the development of CAR T-cell therapy for solid childhood tumors, particularly ependymomas. This method, which has already shown success in certain blood cancers, could be revolutionized by reprogramming the tumor environment. The challenge with ependymomas is great because these tumors contain few immune cells that are important for an adequate immune response. The tumors also prevent useful immune cells from entering and attract cells that suppress the immune response.

The researchers plan to trigger an inflammatory response in the tumor to make it more accessible to CAR T cells. These genetically modified T cells are modified in the laboratory so that they can specifically recognize the tumor cells and attack them destructively. This could significantly increase the chances of recovery for children with ependymomas.

The role of CAR T cell therapy

CAR T-cell therapy, or Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Cell Therapy, comes from the patient's own immune cells. The T cells are taken from the blood, genetically modified in the laboratory and then multiplied in an enhanced process until they are ready in sufficient numbers to be given back to the patient. This innovative approach has been recognized as gene therapy in the USA since 2017 and shows great potential, especially in combating aggressive tumors.

Thanks to financial and professional support, the looming shadow of ependymomas could soon be lessened to some extent. The upcoming clinical studies based on this promising approach are now being planned and are raising great hopes among affected families.

It remains exciting to see how far the new immunotherapy can advance in the treatment of this terrible type of tumor and whether it offers a future for many children. The advances in cancer research, as reported by the VFA documented, show impressively that a good knack for innovative therapies is essential in order to open up new treatment horizons.