OUR MISSION:
TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC ABOUT SARCOMAS AND RHABDOMYOSARCOMA AND TO HELP RESEARCHERS FIND MORE TARGETED AND BODYSPARING TREATMENTS TO DESTROY OR STOP THE GROWTH OF SARCOMA CANCER CELLS
DID YOU KNOW?
-THAT ONLY 50% OF THE CHILDREN/ADULTS DIAGNOSED WITH RHABDOMYOSARCOMA WILL SURVIVE 5 YEARS! ( SEE CHART ON THE RIGHT FOR AGE DISTRIBUTION OF PATIENTS)
-SINCE THERE ARE ONLY 600 NEW CASES OF RHABODOMYOSARCOMA A YEAR, IT IS
CONSIDERED AN "ORPHAN" DISEASE AND IS NOT FSUPPORTED BY DRUG COMPANY RESEARCH.
SO FUNDING IS LEFT UP TO CHARITIES LIKE OURS!
-THAT ONLY 50% OF THE CHILDREN/ADULTS DIAGNOSED WITH RHABDOMYOSARCOMA WILL SURVIVE 5 YEARS! ( SEE CHART ON THE RIGHT FOR AGE DISTRIBUTION OF PATIENTS)
-SINCE THERE ARE ONLY 600 NEW CASES OF RHABODOMYOSARCOMA A YEAR, IT IS
CONSIDERED AN "ORPHAN" DISEASE AND IS NOT FSUPPORTED BY DRUG COMPANY RESEARCH.
SO FUNDING IS LEFT UP TO CHARITIES LIKE OURS!
We have exciting news from one of our researchers about a new project that may hold the key to having our own stem cells halt the creation or spread of tumor cells in children's muscle cancers. The project is partially funded but needs an additional $15,000 in order to continue the progress. We are asking all of our supporters to help in the effort to raise these funds. Everyone who contributes $50 or more will get a T-shirt from us!! We will show a counter below to show our progress. An article explaining the project is found below.
Halting Tumor Cells from Spreading by
Blocking 'Hostile Mergers'
Childhood muscle cancer is extremely
difficult to cure when the cancer cells have
spread throughout the body. Our preliminary
data suggest that this cancer might actually use
our very own stem cells and normal cell‐to‐cell
communication system to metastasize. We
believe tumor cells 'talk' to muscle stem cells
and convince them to secrete growth factors that enable tumor cells to spread
to new sites in the body. In fact, it also appears that tumor cells fuse to muscle
stem cells ‐ more than just cell‐to‐cell talk, and a rather unexpected 'hostile
merger'. We have identified a specific receptor that appears to be responsible
for this effect. With a blocking antibody to the receptor we can already stop the
spreading of tumors to lymph nodes or to the lungs in mouse experiments.
While the same kind of blocking antibodies have had successful safety testing in
asthma studies by pharmaceutical companies, we have one last critical series of
experiments to conduct before partnering to apply our results to the clinic: we
must test whether fusion of tumor cells to normal stem cells is the key event, or
whether metastasis results when tumor cells and normal stem cells simply crosstalk
without merging/fusing. Either possibility exists, but would change the way
the intervention is taken to clinical trials. We are seeking to raise $19,634 for the
key experiments (1) to observe the time course of tumor cells fusing with normal
stem cells, and (2) to test whether fused cells are more or less capable of
establishing tumors than mixed but unfused cells. This experiment can be
completed within 6 months of raising project funds, and the results will be not
only sent for publication, but also shared with (i) the Children’s Oncology Group
clinical trial committee for rhabdomyosarcoma and (ii) a major pharmaceutical
company with the appropriate therapeutic antibody that might be used in a
clinical trial for children with rhabdomyosarcoma.
This project is part of our crowdfunding effort at Consano,
https://www.consano.org/projects/21‐halting‐tumor‐cells‐from‐spreading‐by‐
School of Medicine
Department of Pediatrics
3181 S.W. Sam Jackson Park Road
Mail Code: L321
Portland, OR 97239-3098
Tel 503.494.1210
Fax 503.418.5044
keller@ohsu.edu
Charles Keller, M.D.
Associate Professor
Tarshis Professor of Pediatric Oncology
Papé Family Pediatric Research Institute
Department of Pediatrics
Member, Knight Cancer Institute
Member, Oregon Stem Cell Center
Donation of any amount will help us get towards the
remaining $15,000 of our goal tourchase of live cell tumor environmental chamber
for confocal imaging of tumor cell ‐ stem cell fusion.
Blocking 'Hostile Mergers'
Childhood muscle cancer is extremely
difficult to cure when the cancer cells have
spread throughout the body. Our preliminary
data suggest that this cancer might actually use
our very own stem cells and normal cell‐to‐cell
communication system to metastasize. We
believe tumor cells 'talk' to muscle stem cells
and convince them to secrete growth factors that enable tumor cells to spread
to new sites in the body. In fact, it also appears that tumor cells fuse to muscle
stem cells ‐ more than just cell‐to‐cell talk, and a rather unexpected 'hostile
merger'. We have identified a specific receptor that appears to be responsible
for this effect. With a blocking antibody to the receptor we can already stop the
spreading of tumors to lymph nodes or to the lungs in mouse experiments.
While the same kind of blocking antibodies have had successful safety testing in
asthma studies by pharmaceutical companies, we have one last critical series of
experiments to conduct before partnering to apply our results to the clinic: we
must test whether fusion of tumor cells to normal stem cells is the key event, or
whether metastasis results when tumor cells and normal stem cells simply crosstalk
without merging/fusing. Either possibility exists, but would change the way
the intervention is taken to clinical trials. We are seeking to raise $19,634 for the
key experiments (1) to observe the time course of tumor cells fusing with normal
stem cells, and (2) to test whether fused cells are more or less capable of
establishing tumors than mixed but unfused cells. This experiment can be
completed within 6 months of raising project funds, and the results will be not
only sent for publication, but also shared with (i) the Children’s Oncology Group
clinical trial committee for rhabdomyosarcoma and (ii) a major pharmaceutical
company with the appropriate therapeutic antibody that might be used in a
clinical trial for children with rhabdomyosarcoma.
This project is part of our crowdfunding effort at Consano,
https://www.consano.org/projects/21‐halting‐tumor‐cells‐from‐spreading‐by‐
School of Medicine
Department of Pediatrics
3181 S.W. Sam Jackson Park Road
Mail Code: L321
Portland, OR 97239-3098
Tel 503.494.1210
Fax 503.418.5044
keller@ohsu.edu
Charles Keller, M.D.
Associate Professor
Tarshis Professor of Pediatric Oncology
Papé Family Pediatric Research Institute
Department of Pediatrics
Member, Knight Cancer Institute
Member, Oregon Stem Cell Center
Donation of any amount will help us get towards the
remaining $15,000 of our goal tourchase of live cell tumor environmental chamber
for confocal imaging of tumor cell ‐ stem cell fusion.
