A promising target for children with highly aggressive brain tumors such as atypical teratoid and rhabdoid tumor (AT/RT) and medulloblastoma can help treat brain tumors, reveals a new study.
Previously, the authors of the study have shown that an experimental drug that inhibits polo-like kinase 4 (PLK4) stopped pediatric brain tumor growth in vitro.
Brain Tumor
Brain tumors are the abnormal growth of brain cells that may be benign or metastatic. Brain tumors account for about 2.4% of all the tumor diagnosesandare most challenging due to their critically delicate location.
Advertisement
‘Targeting PLK4 with chemotherapy drugs can kill the cancer cells and prevents atypical teratoid and rhabdoid tumor in children.’
Tweet it Now
Now, they have demonstrated its success in an animal model - the drug shrank the tumor and increased survival. The findings were published in Oncotarget.
Importantly, the PLK4 inhibitor was able to cross the blood-brain barrier, which means that the drug can target cancer cells in the brain even when taken orally, avoiding the need for injection into the spinal fluid.
![Brain Tumor in Children]( "Brain Tumor in Children")
An abnormal growth of cells in the brain is called brain tumor. Most tumors arise within the brain (primary). They can be benign or cancerous.
In this new study, researchers also demonstrated that when they associate a PLK4 inhibitor with traditional chemotherapy drugs, they kill tumor cells with significantly lower drug doses.
"We are very excited with the outcome of this work," said lead author Simone Treiger Sredni, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and cancer researcher at the Stanley Manne Children's Research Institute of Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.
"This promising treatment strategy may also help us reduce toxicity when used with other chemotherapy agents."
In a previous study, Sredni and colleagues were the first to describe PLK4 as a therapeutic target for brain tumors and in pediatric cancer. They found that, in these particular types of tumors, PLK4 regulates tumor growth and the tumor's tendency to metastasize.
AT/RT is a therapy resistant brain tumor that mostly occurs in infants.
Medulloblastoma is the most frequent malignant brain tumor in children and current treatments for it are highly toxic. Both of these types of brain tumors have a high mortality rate.
"New targeted therapies are urgently needed for children with AT/RT and medulloblastoma," said Sredni.
"We expect that targeting PLK4 will prove to be an effective and less toxic treatment approach for these children, and we hope to move to a clinical trial soon."
Source: Eurekalert
Brain Tumor in Children
An abnormal growth of cells in the brain is called brain tumor. Most tumors arise within the brain (primary). They can be benign or cancerous.
Advertisement
In this new study, researchers also demonstrated that when they associate a PLK4 inhibitor with traditional chemotherapy drugs, they kill tumor cells with significantly lower drug doses.
"We are very excited with the outcome of this work," said lead author Simone Treiger Sredni, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and cancer researcher at the Stanley Manne Children's Research Institute of Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.
"This promising treatment strategy may also help us reduce toxicity when used with other chemotherapy agents."
In a previous study, Sredni and colleagues were the first to describe PLK4 as a therapeutic target for brain tumors and in pediatric cancer. They found that, in these particular types of tumors, PLK4 regulates tumor growth and the tumor's tendency to metastasize.
AT/RT is a therapy resistant brain tumor that mostly occurs in infants.
Medulloblastoma is the most frequent malignant brain tumor in children and current treatments for it are highly toxic. Both of these types of brain tumors have a high mortality rate.
"New targeted therapies are urgently needed for children with AT/RT and medulloblastoma," said Sredni.
"We expect that targeting PLK4 will prove to be an effective and less toxic treatment approach for these children, and we hope to move to a clinical trial soon."
Source: Eurekalert
Astrocytoma
Astrocytomas are primary brain tumors and the most common type of glial tumors. There are many varieties of astrocytomas, and it is seen in all age groups.
Advertisement
Advertisement
|
Advertisement
Recommended Readings
Latest Cancer News
Uncovering key kinases in tumor growth and invasion is crucial for improving targeted therapies in advanced-stage colorectal cancer.
The study findings validate metal-enhanced photo-oxidation for future metal-based anticancer drugs.
Mutations in 11 genes are linked to aggressive forms of prostate cancer, which may present novel therapeutic and therapy options.
Improved oral health, as indicated by the count of natural teeth and dental appointments preceding the diagnosis, correlated with enhanced head and neck cancer survival rates.
The presence of painless swelling in the lymph nodes could potentially indicate lymphatic cancer, say experts.
