Choroid Plexus Tumor (CPT) Therapies Based on Patient-derived Cell Culture Resources

Choroid plexus tumors (CPT) are rare tumors. Around 80% of choroid plexus carcinoma (CPC) arise in children and account for 10-15% of all CPTs. Clinically, this group of tumors tends to cause hydrocephalus and increased intracranial pressure. Surgical removal is considered to be the most effective treatment for CPCs and chemotherapy contributes to long-term survival, but it cannot prevent recurrence of tumors. Current data supports the use of combined chemoradiation for treatment of CPCs, but the total amount of necessary treatment and the order in which they should be administered is still controversial. Due to their rarity, reports on CPC most often focus on single cases or single-institution experiences with a limited number of patients. The goals of this project are to establish CPT cell lines from frozen patient CPC tissue obtained from the Children’s Brain Tumor Network. Researchers will perform molecular characterization of these cultured cell lines and to conduct drug screening. Additional experimental manipulation will be carried out in the hopes of designing effective therapies for CPTs and particularly CPCs.