Neuroblastoma

Minimising the side effects of neuroblastoma treatment in children.

Dr Elizabeth Tucker is a Senior Scientific Officer in Paediatric Solid Tumour Biology and Therapeutics at the Institute of Cancer Research.

Neuroblastoma is a childhood cancer arising from the nervous system, most commonly presenting as a lump in the abdomen of a young child. Despite treatment having become more intensive, only half of children diagnosed with the most severe form of neuroblastoma survive beyond five years from diagnosis. Those children who do survive frequently suffer long-term complications of toxic therapies. There is therefore an urgent need for kinder treatment options for neuroblastoma patients.

Using a laboratory model of neuroblastoma, Elizabeth and her team will carry out highly sensitive and objective monitoring of a new neuroblastoma treatment targeting a specific gene known as ALK. This treatment has already been approved for use in adults diagnosed with other cancers involving the ALK gene, but has not yet been evaluated for children with neuroblastoma. The researchers will closely monitor the side effects of the new treatment, generating data which will guide the implementation of improved treatments for children with neuroblastoma.