Menu

Topics

Connect

Comments

Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.

Canadian researchers team up to find a cure to childhood cancer

WATCH: Researchers at the Montreal Children’s Hospital, Sainte-Justine, are taking part in a $16-million initiative to accelerate research breakthroughs in pediatric cancer treatment to hopefully find a cure. Global's Amanda Jelowicki reports – Nov 23, 2017

Joshua Rothman, 11, was diagnosed with a brain tumor when he was just a baby.

Story continues below advertisement

He’s grown up getting treatment and enduring countless hours of chemotherapy at the Montreal Children’s Hospital.

“It’s kind of my second home, I guess,” he told Global News.

READ MORE: Novel leukemia treatment could be 1st US gene therapy

Recently, he’s started getting targeted precision therapy to treat the tumor; he takes a pill and can even go to school after.

The groundbreaking initiative may soon be available to sick children across Canada.

READ MORE: Saskatoon family appealing for more childhood cancer research funding

Thursday, researchers at the Children’s and Sainte-Justine Hospital announced they are taking part in a $16.4-million initiative to accelerate research breakthroughs in pediatric cancer treatment to hopefully find a cure.

The program is called Terry Fox PROFYLE (profile), or Precision Oncology for Young People, which is a collaboration of 20 Canadian research partners, pediatric cancer researchers, funding groups and the Terry Fox Research Institute.

Story continues below advertisement

READ MORE: Regina boy shares journey through childhood cancer

“If we put our efforts together, if we understand better the tumor, its genetic make-up, we can come up with solutions,” said Dr. Nada Jabado, one of the lead researchers with the Montreal Children’s Hospital.

“We have seen already that some targeted therapy is making a big difference for patients.”

She says collaborative, precision medicine could treat the 20 per cent of young cancer patients who have run out of conventional treatment options.

READ MORE: Money for childhood cancer research almost stolen at Saskatoon fundraiser

In a statement, the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) said a quarter of the funding will come from Quebec.

“In Canada, cancer remains the leading cause of illness-related death in children,” said the MUHC.

Story continues below advertisement

Researchers will sequence tumours at the molecular level to amass information that is then analyzed at one of three labs in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal.

The aim is to be able to create personalized treatment for patients with tumours that are difficult to treat with conventional therapy — no matter where they live in Canada.

READ MORE: Catching childhood eye cancer early

Forty people are already involved in the study and have had their tumours sequenced.

— with files from Global’s Amanda Jelowicki and The Canadian Press.

rachel.lau@globalnews.ca

Advertisement

You are viewing an Accelerated Mobile Webpage.

View Original Article