Open Access Government: Developing novel therapies for childhood cancers (Houghton)

Dr Peter J Houghton from Greehey Children’s Cancer Research Institute discusses the obstacles in developing new treatments for childhood cancers and new approaches in preclinical testing.

In my previous article for Open Access Government, I focused on the challenges of developing novel therapies for children with glioma, the most prevalent brain cancer in children. Here, I want to discuss the challenges at the preclinical stage of drug development, an area of research that will be altered significantly by the Research to Accelerate Cures and Equity for Children Act (RACE for Children Act).

This U.S. law requires the Food and Drug Agency (FDA) to develop a list of molecular targets and molecular targets of new drugs and biologics in development that are determined to be relevant to pediatric cancers. The objective is to facilitate a more rapid introduction of new drugs into the pediatric cancer armamentarium. The FDA may now require pediatric assessments when molecular targets under FDA review are considered relevant to childhood cancer.

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Since 2004, UT Health San Antonio, Greehey Children’s Cancer Research Institute’s (Greehey CCRI) mission has been to advance scientific knowledge relevant to childhood cancer, contribute to understanding its causes, and accelerate the translation of knowledge into novel therapies. Greehey CCRI strives to have a national and global impact on childhood cancer by discovering, developing, and disseminating new scientific knowledge. Our mission consists of three key areas — research, clinical, and education.

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