The first signs of Wilms’ tumor—a painless swelling in the abdomen, blood in the urine, belly pain, high blood pressure or fevers—often seem to be symptoms of something much less scary. A pediatrician will recommend an abdominal ultrasound and then a diagnosis will be made. Treatment, which typically includes surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, begins. Most children, even those with higher stages of the disease can finish treatment knowing that they will most likely never battle... Read More
The Childhood Cancer Blog
Welcome to The Childhood Cancer Blog
from Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation!
When Sophia (above) was just 4 years old, she had to have an 8-hour surgery to remove a tumor on her kidney, followed by 18 months of chemotherapy and radiation. Sophia had Wilms’ tumor, the most common kidney cancer in children.
ALSF Innovation grantee Darrell Yamashiro works in the lab at Columbia University Medical Center. Dr. Yamashiro works with Dr. Julia Bender-Glade (mentioned below) developing therapies for relapsed childhood cancer.
by Trish Adkins
Gone are the days of just chemotherapy and radiation. Today’s researchers and oncologists are combining the traditional tools with cutting-edge biological medicine, genetic analysis and novel therapeutics in the labs and clinics.
Childhood cancer researchers are working hard towards better treatments and more cures every single day. Here are five trends in research today:
1. Treating the patient, not just the cancer
For over 40 years, scientists have known about oncogenes, the abnormal genes that can drive the growth of abnormal cells that... Read More
The process of bringing an idea from the lab to clinical trial can take years. Researchers are not only required to prove the effectiveness of their science, they also need to get FDA approval to provide an experimental therapy to actual patients. On top of all this, researchers also must ensure that their home hospital has the correct infrastructure in place to administer a clinical trial.
Over 700 new children are affected by cancer every day. For these kids, years are too long to wait. To help researchers get to the clinical trial phase quicker, ALSF established the... Read More
