New drug to bypass resistance in deadly childhood cancer

New Delhi, Nov 29 Researchers in Australia have identified a drug that can help overcome treatment resistance in relapsed neuroblastoma -- the deadly childhood cancer.

The discovery could improve neuroblastoma treatment -- the most common solid tumour in children outside the brain -- which currently claims nine out of 10 young patients who experience recurrence, Xinhua news agency reported

According to Australia's Garvan Institute of Medical Research, the drug combination can bypass the cellular defences these tumours develop that lead to relapse.

The team showed that the approved lymphoma drug -- romidepsin -- triggers neuroblastoma cell death via alternative pathways, bypassing blocked routes to improve chemotherapy-resistant cases in children.

Researchers found standard chemotherapy drugs rely on the JNK pathway "switch" for cell death. In relapsed tumours, this switch has often stopped working, meaning treatments are no longer effective.

The findings made in animal models showed that romidepsin combined with standard chemotherapy halts tumour growth via alternative cell-death pathways, bypassing the blocked JNK pathway common in resistant cases.

The combo reduced tumour growth, extended survival, and allowed lower chemo doses, potentially reducing side effects for young children, according to the findings published in Science Advances.

“Finding a way to overcome the resistant state of relapsed high-risk neuroblastomas has been a major goal for my lab,” said David Croucher, Associate Professor at the Garvan Institute.

“These tumours can be highly resistant to chemotherapy – and the statistics once patients get to that point are devastating for families,” he added.

Romidepsin is already approved for use in other cancers and has been tested for safety in children, which could potentially accelerate the development of the drug as a new treatment option for neuroblastoma.

However, any clinical application requires further testing and clinical trials to establish the combination’s safety and efficacy in neuroblastoma, Croucher said.

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