Identification of Novel Therapeutic Approaches for pHGGs

Gliomas are the most common central nervous system (CNS) tumors in children and adolescents, and they display a particularly broad range of clinical behaviors. Unfortunately, during the last decades there have been no advances in the prognosis of these tumors and therapeutic strategies have changed very little. Pediatric high-grade glioma (pHGG) is a devastating form of glioma, with the most aggressive forms being lethal within months. Conventional treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, can have devastating effects on the developing brain of a child. Therefore, new modes of treatment are greatly needed. Targeted therapies could reduce the need for toxic therapies such as chemotherapy and radiation. Researchers plan to use a combination of mouse and patient-derived models to identify novel therapeutic approaches for pHGGs. The cell lines generated though the Children’s Brain Tumor Network represent an unique and extremely valuable resource.