Cancer is the rapid proliferation of malignant cells that permeate tissue and cause dysregulation of the body’s daily functions. Many cancers can be characterized by the mutation cells have and how the tumors behave. Specifically, tumors are graded based on location and aggressive nature, which informs physicians of tumor resistance to therapy. Unfortunately, there are various tumor types and each one can respond differently in a patient. Many late-stage tumors have adapted to suppress a patient’s immune system and continue to expand undetected. Moreover, tumors are comprised of many different cells with various mutations. This complexity is known as heterogeneity and is a key barrier to cancer treatments and immunotherapies.
Tumor type and stage dictate the method of immediate treatment and long-term surveillance. Fortunately, many cancer programs across America have increased their treatment success due to advances in the field, such as immunotherapy. While healthcare professionals have made significant progress treating tumors, some cancer types pose life-threatening outcomes. One type of cancer associated with low survival rates includes brain cancer. Unfortunately, both adult and pediatric brain tumors can cause debilitating symptoms. Additionally, pediatric brain cancer brings new levels of complexity as the body continues to develop and mature.
Pediatric brain cancer is one of the most common childhood cancers with aggressive subtypes. Unfortunately, there is a lot that scientists do not know about the brain and how it specifically functions. Consequently, effective treatments for brain tumors are limited. However, physicians and scientists are working together to better characterize tumor heterogeneity and identify markers to best target and treat brain tumors in pediatric patients.
A recent article in Science Translational Medicine, by Dr. Gary Kohanbash and others, have developed a new way to classify pediatric brain tumors and improve treatment. Kohanbash is a neurosurgeon and faculty member at the University at Pittsburg, where he holds appointments in the Departments of Immunology and Neurological Surgery. He specializes in cancer immunotherapy for both pediatric and adult brain and nervous system cancers.
The team began examining patient microscopy tissue samples and analyzed genetic characteristics to classify brain tumors based on the body’s immune response. Researchers then tailored treatment regimens unique to each patient. Specifically, tumor cell surface markers that activated anti-tumor immunity were identified, which doubled the immune cell response.
Kohanbash and his team had access to an updated dataset with thousands of pediatric brain tumor samples. With the use of advanced bioinformatic technology, the team investigated immune cells that responded to specific tumor proteins, which could act as early biomarkers for diagnostic analysis. Researchers profiled roughly a thousand pediatric brain samples through the Children’s Brain Tumor Network (CBTN), which is a research consortium comprised of 35 medical centers around the world. As a result, the group discovered that there were fewer immune cells expanding in more aggressive tumors. However, they were able to identify immune activating-markers on the cancer cells to improve therapy in more aggressive subtypes.
Kohanbash and others identified key markers in pediatric brain tumors that can improve therapeutic efficacy. As a result, they classified brain tumors to better inform physicians on how to treat patients. Researchers hope that understanding the immune cell response in the diverse landscape of pediatric tumors can help generate better therapies and improve overall survival.
Article, Science Translational Medicine, Gary Kohanbash, University at Pittsburg, CBTN
