Lisa Porter, Associate Professor, Biological Sciences, University of Windsor
Project Summary:
Medulloblastoma is the most prevalent of all childhood brain cancers, with average 5 year survival rates of approximately 62% for children ages 0-14.
There are at least 4 very distinct types of this disease that have different prognoses and likewise require independent treatment strategies. Among these groups, those denoted as ‘Group 3’ are known to have the worst probability of survival, seeing little benefit from the current generalized chemotherapy/radiotherapy approach. It is of high priority to find novel therapeutic strategies for this subset of medulloblastoma patients.
We, and others, have data to support that targeting a specific group of proteins known as Cdks represent an important therapeutic avenue that may offer exceptional benefits to Group 3 medulloblastoma patients.
This study will use patient samples and cells in a unique drug screening model to test the potential of using these Cdk drugs to treat medulloblastoma patients. This project holds promise for improving survival and quality of life for a subset of medulloblastoma patients that currently rely on suboptimal treatment options.
Source: Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada