Patient Wall: our thanks to many

We are grateful to all the families across the world that contributed to the laboratory patient wall at OHSU.  These families, touched by cancer, remind us not only of why innovation and time are of the essence, but also that cancer does not define these families, and there is childhood to return to once cancer is a uniformly curable condition.

The generous employees of Planar made possible the digital presentations of more than 300 family pictures.  Most of the credit in designing and implementing the wall goes to lab member, Jen Alabran, whose scientific expertise is matched only by her compassion for children with cancer.

We look forward to the day of Giving Back Childhood to all children touched by cancer.

[additional photos will be accepted on a continuing basis for families wishing to share their photos and stories. contact Charles via keller(at)ohsu.edu ]

 

The Not-so-Skinny on Muscle Cancer

Click here to read Ken's Cancer Cell commentary on this report of a mouse model of embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma derived from white and brown fat progenitor cells.  

DragonSlayer Portland 2012

Our team name at the Northwest Sarcoma Foundation "DragonSlayer" event this year was the Sarcoma Smashers.  This was the biggest DragonSlayer event Portland has ever seen. 658 participants whose efforts helped us raise $30,000 for sarcoma research!  Check out our flickr link with all of the event photos.  To view photos of the event click here as well as here.  

International Exchange of Ideas on Sarcomas

We are grateful to our collaborators Monica Suelves and Miquel Angel Peinado at the IMPPC in Barcelona for the invitation to present our results of collaborative studies on epigenetic influences of the cell of origin of rhabdomyosarcoma.

Following this visit, the work of KellerLab-DrukerLab co-mentored HHMI medical student, M. Imran Aslam, entitled, "PDGFR reverses Eph signaling in alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma" was presented at the ESF-EMBO Symposium, “Molecular Biology &Innovative Therapies in Sarcomas  of Childhood and Adolescence” organized by Beat Schaefer.  This latter conference was in Putlusk, Poland, and was perhaps the best rhabdomyosarcoma and Ewing's sarcoma conference in 10-15 years.  Many collaborations amongst all attendees were created.

   

2:1 matching dollars for alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma

A pharmaceutical company in the Northeast has offered 2:1 matching dollars to fund research on a kinase inhibitor they make which our lab believes will be of benefit to patients with alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma.  The pharmaceutical company is willing to contribute up to $84,000 to match donations from the community of up to $42,000. 

   

This particular drug (kinase inhibitor) has a good rationale for being important exclusively in the alveolar subtype of rhabdomyosarcoma, and it is rare that we find a partner in industry willing to advance a drug just for alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma to the clinic.  The basic science studies we would do (preclinical studies) are the prelude to clinical trial studies that the pharmaceutical company would pay for in full (usually a >$2M investment on their part).

  

For more information, please email Charles at keller@ohsu.edu .  

  

COG Fall 2012 Meeting

This Fall's Children's Oncology Group meeting was energized as the new leadership initiatives to incorporate more and more science into clinical trial design are evolving.  Presentations from our lab and program included:

- Targets of opportunity for rhabdomyosarcoma (soft tissue sarcoma session)

- Ad Hoc Preclinical Consortia to Support Trial Design for DIPG (brain tumor session)

- The Rally Foundation Legacy Gift Pilot Program (pathology session)

as well as research on two STS committee agents of interest.  
  
Expect an announcement soon on the initiative from the Rally Foundation, one of the leaders in innovative, grassroots childhood cancer research funding. 
  

Rally Foundation takes bold step in Pediatric Cancer Research

Stay tuned for a more formal announcement of a $166,000 grant from the Rally Foundation to fund Legacy Gifts (research autopsy opportunities to find new ways to treat the otherwise untreatable 1 in 5 childhood cancers).  Jinu is grateful to be the recipient of this award which brings Legacy Gifts to a national level.