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Lessons from 50 years of curing childhood leukaemiaOne of the great success stories of modern medicine is undoubtedly the remarkable improvement in outcome for childhood cancer, achieved through the work of...
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High expression of connective tissue growth factor accelerates dissemination of leukaemiaFunctional role of CTGF in altering disease progression in a lymphoid malignancy
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Systematic In Vitro Evaluation of a Library of Approved and Pharmacologically Active Compounds for the Identification of Novel Candidate Drugs for KMT2A-Rearranged LeukemiaPatients whose leukemias harbor a rearrangement of the Mixed Lineage Leukemia (MLL/KMT2A) gene have a poor prognosis, especially when the disease strikes in infants. The poor clinical outcome linked to this aggressive disease and the detrimental treatment side-effects, particularly in children, warrant the urgent development of more effective and cancer-selective therapeutics.
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Antifungal use in children with acute leukaemia: state of current evidence and directions for future researchInvasive fungal disease (IFD) remains a common and serious complication in children treated for leukaemia. Antifungal prescription in children with leukaemia presents unique challenges, particularly due to variation in IFD risk between and within leukaemia treatment protocols, drug toxicities and interactions between antifungals and chemotherapeutic agents.
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Successful treatment of a child with acute monoblastic leukaemia who relapsed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia: A rare lineage switchRishi S. Kotecha MB ChB (Hons) MRCPCH FRACP PhD Co-Head, Leukaemia Translational Research rishi.kotecha@health.wa.gov.au Co-Head, Leukaemia
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Preclinical Assessment of Dactinomycin in KMT2A-Rearranged Infant Acute Lymphoblastic LeukemiaInfants with KMT2A-rearranged B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have high rates of relapse and poor survival compared with children. Few new therapies have been identified over the past twenty years. The aim of this study was to identify existing anti-cancer agents that have the potential to be repurposed for the treatment of infant ALL.
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Polyamine depletion limits progression of acute leukaemiaCancer cells are addicted to polyamines, polycations essential for cellular function. While dual targeting of cellular polyamine biosynthesis and polyamine uptake is under clinical investigation in solid cancers, preclinical and clinical studies into its potential in haematological malignancies are lacking. Here we investigated the preclinical efficacy of polyamine depletion in acute leukaemia.
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The critical role of the bone marrow stromal microenvironment for the development of drug screening platforms in leukemiaExtensive research over the past 50 years has resulted in significant improvements in survival for patients diagnosed with leukemia. Despite this, a subgroup of patients harboring high-risk genetic alterations still suffer from poor outcomes. There is a desperate need for new treatments to improve survival, yet consistent failure exists in the translation of in vitro drug development to clinical application.
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Updates in infant acute lymphoblastic leukemia and the potential for targeted therapyOutcomes for infants diagnosed under 1 year of age with KMT2A-rearranged acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) have remained stagnant over the past 20 years. Successive treatment protocols have previously focused on intensification of conventional chemotherapy, but increased treatment-related toxicity and chemoresistance have led to a plateau in survival.
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Constitutive Activation of RAS/MAPK Pathway Cooperates with Trisomy 21 and Is Therapeutically Exploitable in Down Syndrome B-cell LeukemiaChildren with Down syndrome (constitutive trisomy 21) that develop acute lymphoblastic leukemia (DS-ALL) have a 3-fold increased likelihood of treatment-related mortality coupled with a higher cumulative incidence of relapse, compared with other children with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL).