Cancer Centre
The SJ Elliot Cancer Trial
Three-continent clinical trial aims to improve survival for aggressive kids’ brain cancer
Team
Reports and Findings
Conventional Therapies Deplete Brain-Infiltrating Adaptive Immune Cells in a Mouse Model of Group 3 Medulloblastoma Implicating Myeloid Cells as Favorable Immunotherapy Targets
Medulloblastoma is the most common childhood brain cancer. Mainstay treatments of radiation and chemotherapy have not changed in decades and new treatment approaches are crucial for the improvement of clinical outcomes. To date, immunotherapies for medulloblastoma have been unsuccessful, and studies investigating the immune microenvironment of the disease and the impact of current therapies are limited.
Children's Cancers Published research Brain Tumour Research Oncogenic Signalling LaboratoryDefining the molecular features of radiation-induced glioma: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Cranial radiation therapy is essential in treating many pediatric cancers, especially brain tumors; however, its use comes with the risk of developing second malignancies. Cranial radiation-induced gliomas (RIGs) are aggressive high-grade tumors with a dismal prognosis, for which no standard therapy exists. A definitive molecular signature for RIGs has not yet been established. We sought to address this gap by performing a systematic review and meta-analysis of the molecular features of cranial RIGs.
Children's Cancers Published research Brain Tumour ResearchCOVID-19 vaccination in children and adolescents aged 5 years and older undergoing treatment for cancer and non-malignant haematological conditions: Australian and New Zealand Children’s Haematology/Oncology Group consensus statement
The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation and New Zealand Ministry of Health recommend all children aged ≥ 5 years receive either of the two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines: Comirnaty (Pfizer), available in both Australia and New Zealand, or Spikevax (Moderna), available in Australia only. Both vaccines are efficacious and safe in the general population, including children. Children and adolescents undergoing treatment for cancer and immunosuppressive therapy for non-malignant haematological conditions are particularly vulnerable, with an increased risk of severe or fatal COVID-19.
Children's Cancers Published research Immunisation Infectious Diseases Infectious Diseases Epidemiology Vaccine Trials Group Brain Tumour Research Leukaemia Translational Research Subsite: Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases COVID-19Challenges in the Management of Childhood Intracranial Germ Cell Tumors in Middle-Income Countries: A 20-Year Retrospective Review From a Single Tertiary Center in Malaysia
A higher incidence of pediatric intracranial germ cell tumors (iGCTs) in Asian countries compared with Western countries has been reported. In Malaysia, the literature regarding pediatric iGCTs have been nonexistent. The aim of this study was to review the management, survival, and long-term outcomes of pediatric iGCTs at a single tertiary center in Malaysia.
Children's Cancers Published research Brain Tumour Research