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Parents of children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) experience emotional distress throughout their child's treatment course. This study describes the psychological experience of Australian and New Zealand parents of children diagnosed with ALL.
The RNA-binding protein IGF2BP3 is an oncofetal protein overexpressed in B-acute lymphoblastic leukemia and is critical for leukemogenesis in experimental models. With cancerspecific expression, functional dispensability for normal development, and an unleveraged prooncogenic function in mRNA homeostasis, IGF2BP3 represents an excellent target.
To determine the incidence, serotype distribution and clinical outcomes of invasive pneumococcal disease in children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia following widespread use of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines.
B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) is the most common pediatric cancer. Current therapeutic regimens have improved 5-year event-free survival rates to 90%, however clinical outcomes for high-risk subgroups, such as BCR-ABL1+ B-ALL and relapsed ALL, remain poor. In addition, 16% of newly diagnosed children with ALL present with vertebral compression fractures. Moreover, 16% of children with ALL undergoing glucocorticoid therapy also experience a high incidence of vertebral fractures, indicating that bone health may be compromised by both leukemia progression and osteotoxicity of chemotherapy.
Mesothelioma is a cancer derived from mesothelial cells, most commonly arising from the pleura or the peritoneum. Immune checkpoint therapy (ICT) has shown survival benefit for pleural mesothelioma, but little is known about the response in peritoneal mesothelioma. Most preclinical mesothelioma models involve subcutaneous cancer cell implantation, which lacks the relevant tumour microenvironment of peritoneal mesothelioma and does not resemble the clinical presentation.
Rishi S. Kotecha MB ChB (Hons) MRCPCH FRACP PhD Co-Head, Leukaemia Translational Research rishi.kotecha@health.wa.gov.au Co-Head, Leukaemia
Children with Down syndrome (DS) are at increased risk of developing haematological malignancies, in particular acute megakaryoblastic leukaemia and acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. The microenvironment established by abnormal haematopoiesis driven by trisomy 21 is compounded by additional genetic and epigenetic changes that can drive leukaemogenesis in patients with DS.
Children receiving treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) are at high risk of invasive fungal disease (IFD). Evidence from pediatric studies support the efficacy of antifungal prophylaxis in reducing the burden of IFD in children receiving therapy for AML, yet existing antifungal agents have specific limitations and comparative data to inform the optimal prophylactic approach are lacking.
Copy number alterations (CNAs), resulting from the gain or loss of genetic material from as little as 50 base pairs or as big as entire chromosome(s), have been associated with many congenital diseases, de novo syndromes and cancer. It is established that CNAs disturb the dosage of genomic regions including enhancers/promoters, long non-coding RNA and gene(s) among others, ultimately leading to an altered balance of key cellular functions.
Invasive fungal disease (IFD) occurs less frequently during treatment for solid compared to hematological malignancies in children, and risk groups are poorly defined. Retrospective national multicenter cohort data (2004-2013) were analyzed to document prevalence, clinical characteristics, and microbiology of IFD.