Lay Summary: Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Gliomas (DIPGs) are the most lethal of all pediatric brain cancers. Surgical removal is nearly impossible; they are resistant to all known chemotherapies and the positive effects of radiation therapy are temporary at best. Sadly, the majority of children die within two years of diagnosis. Therefore, novel therapeutic approaches are urgently needed.
The cure rate for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has improved remarkably over the last four decades. However in spite of this improvement 10% to 15% of children will suffer a recurrence and their prognosis is dismal making ALL one of the leading causes of death due to cancer in children. We and others have shown that relapse is due to the outgrowth of a resistant subclone and we have discovered that these subclones contain mutations in genes that regulate response to the drugs used in therapy. This is true for both conventional, as well as, new immunotherapeutic agents.
Chris loves baseball – he has a history of playing for his high school team and is a longtime fan of the San Francisco Giants. However, when he was in high school, Chris began having strange symptoms. Today, Chris is a three-time survivor of glioblastoma.
