Role of LIN28B in the Regulation of Ribosomal Biogenesis and Lipid Metabolism in Medulloblastoma Brain Cancer Cells.

Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most aggressive paediatric brain cancer, highlighting the urgent need for new diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers and improved treatments to enhance patient outcomes. Our previous study identified LIN28B, an RNA-binding protein, as a potential diagnostic and prognostic marker for MB and a pharmacological target to inhibit MB cell proliferation and stemness. However, the specific role of LIN28B and its mechanism of action in MB had not been studied.

The Australian New Zealand Consortium in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults Oncofertility action plan.

International and national oncofertility networks, including the US-led Oncofertility Consortium, FertiProtekt, and the Danish Network, have played pivotal roles in advancing the discipline of oncofertility over the last decade. Many other countries lack a shared approach to pediatric oncofertility health service delivery. This study aims to describe baseline oncofertility practices at Australian New Zealand Children's Haematology/Oncology Group centers in 2019-2021, describe binational priorities for care, and propose a 5-year action plan for best practice to be implemented by the newly formed Australian New Zealand Consortium in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults (CAYA) Oncofertility (ANZCO).

LIN28 expression and function in medulloblastoma.

Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most common malignant pediatric brain tumor. Current treatment modalities are not completely effective and can lead to severe neurological and cognitive adverse effects. In addition to urgently needing better treatment approaches, new diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers are required to improve the therapy outcomes of MB patients.

Osteosarcoma in a Child Below 2 Years of Age: Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Background: Osteosarcoma in children below the age of 5 is extremely rare.

Observation: We report on a previously well 14-month-old male infant, who presented with a reluctance to weight-bear on his right leg and had an associated limp. Plain imaging and a magnetic resonance imaging scan demonstrated a lytic lesion in the right distal femur.

Favourable outcomes for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in an isolated setting: The Tasmanian experience.

Background: Tasmania is a large, relatively isolated island located south of mainland Australia with limited tertiary level paediatric oncology services.

Aims: To benchmark regional outcomes for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) against published international standards.

Methods: We undertook a retrospective cohort study, analysing the clinical characteristics and health outcomes of all children diagnosed with and treated for ALL in Tasmania, Australia between 2006 and 2015.

Pulmonary Function After Treatment for Embryonal Brain Tumors on SJMB03 That Included Craniospinal Irradiation.

Purpose: The treatment of children with embryonal brain tumors (EBT) includes craniospinal irradiation (CSI). There are limited data regarding the effect of CSI on pulmonary function.

Methods: Protocol SJMB03 enrolled patients 3 to 21 years of age with EBT.

Single agent carboplatin for pediatric low-grade glioma: A retrospective analysis shows equivalent efficacy to multiagent chemotherapy.

Pediatric low-grade gliomas (LGG) that are unresectable often require adjuvant chemotherapy such as carboplatin/vincristine. Small Phase II studies have suggested equivalent efficacy of single agent 4-weekly carboplatin. A single-institution retrospective review captured all patients aged 0 to 18 years diagnosed with LGG between 1996 and 2013 and treated with carboplatin monotherapy.

Confirmation of Bevacizumab Activity, and Maintenance of Efficacy in Retreatment After Subsequent Relapse, in Pediatric Low-grade Glioma.

Background: Management of low-grade gliomas (LGG) can be a challenge, particularly when not resectable and refractory or recurrent following standard treatments. We undertook a retrospective analysis of 2 institutions' experiences treating children for refractory or progressive LGG with bevacizumab-based therapy (BBT).

Procedure: Inclusion criteria were patients younger than 18 years of age who had previously failed one or more lines of therapy.

Childhood cancers in families with and without Lynch syndrome.

Inheritance of a germline mutation in one of the DNA mismatch repair (MMR) genes or the EPCAM gene is associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer, endometrial cancer, and other adult malignancies (Lynch syndrome). The risk of childhood cancers in Lynch syndrome families, however, is not well studied. Using data from the Colon Cancer Family Registry, we compared the proportion of childhood cancers (diagnosed before 18 years of age) in the first-, second-, and third-degree relatives of 781 probands with a pathogenic mutation in one of the MMR genes; MLH1 (n = 275), MSH2 (n = 342), MSH6 (n = 99), or PMS2 (n = 55) or in EPCAM (n = 10) (Lynch syndrome families), with that of 5073 probands with MMR-deficient colorectal cancer (non-Lynch syndrome families).

Vehicle refuelling, use of domestic wood heaters and the risk of childhood brain tumours: Results from an Australian case-control study.

Background: The aetiology of childhood brain tumours (CBT) is largely unknown. Damage to germ cells after parental exposure to airborne carcinogens, such as volatile organic compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons is one plausible pathway. This analysis aimed to investigate whether parental refuelling of vehicles or the use of domestic wood heaters in key time periods relating to the child's birth was associated with an increased risk of CBT.

Cancer risks for relatives of children with cancer.

We determined the extent and distribution of cancers in relatives of 379 children newly diagnosed with cancer. Family history was collected from 1,337 first-degree and 3,399 second-degree relatives and incidence compared with national age- and gender-specific rates. Overall, 14 children (3.

Concordance between the chang and the International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP) ototoxicity grading scales in patients treated with cisplatin for medulloblastoma.

Background: Reporting ototoxicity is frequently complicated by use of various ototoxicity criteria. The International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP) ototoxicity grading scale was recently proposed for standardized use in reporting hearing loss outcomes across institutions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the concordance between the Chang and SIOP ototoxicity grading scales.

Evaluation of amifostine for protection against cisplatin-induced serious hearing loss in children treated for average-risk or high-risk medulloblastoma.

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate amifostine for protection from cisplatin-induced serious hearing loss in patients with average-risk medulloblastoma by extending a previous analysis to a much larger sample size. In addition, this study aimed to assess amifostine with serious hearing loss in patients with high-risk medulloblastoma treated with cisplatin.

Methods: Newly diagnosed medulloblastoma patients (n = 379; ages 3-21 years), enrolled on one of 2 sequential St.

Medulloblastoma Down Under 2013: a report from the third annual meeting of the International Medulloblastoma Working Group.

Medulloblastoma is curable in approximately 70% of patients. Over the past decade, progress in improving survival using conventional therapies has stalled, resulting in reduced quality of life due to treatment-related side effects, which are a major concern in survivors. The vast amount of genomic and molecular data generated over the last 5-10 years encourages optimism that improved risk stratification and new molecular targets will improve outcomes.

Anaplastic oligodendroglioma in an adolescent with Lynch syndrome.

Lynch syndrome (hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer; HNPCC) is an autosomal dominant cancer predisposition syndrome with high penetrance. It is caused by heterozygous germline mutations in one of the DNA mismatch repair (MMR) genes MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, and PMS2. Carriers are at high-risk for developing colorectal carcinomas, as well as various extracolonic malignancies.

Parental alcohol consumption and risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia and brain tumors.

Purpose: Childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common childhood malignancy and brain tumors (CBTs) are the leading cause of cancer death in children. In our Australian case-control studies of these cancers, we investigated whether parental alcohol consumption before or during pregnancy was associated with risk.

Methods: Cases were identified through the ten Australian pediatric oncology centers, and controls were recruited through national random-digit dialling.

Complementary and alternative medicine use in children with cancer at the end of life.

Background: The use of complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) in patients with cancer is well recognized. Little is known, however, about the use of CAM in children with cancer during the end-of-life period.

Methods: We interviewed 96 parents of children who had died of cancer in Melbourne, Australia between 1996 and 2004 to establish the prevalence of CAM use during the end-of-life period.

Pediatric neuro-oncology: current status and future directions.

Tumors of the central nervous system (CNS) are the most common solid malignancies in childhood and are the leading cause of cancer-related death in this age group. While an ongoing improvement in overall prognosis has been achieved in the last few decades, current therapeutic approaches still confer significant morbidities, especially for the very young. The traditional strategies of surgery, radiotherapy and conventional cytotoxic chemotherapy need to be further refined while newer approaches, including molecularly targeted agents, hold the promise of better responses, improved outcomes and reduced toxicities.

Nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis in a child with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

The diagnosis of nonbacterial thrombotic endocarditis (NTBE) is rarely made during life. This report describes a child who had high-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma with NTBE and multiple systemic embolism. The transthoracic echocardiographic findings of mitral valve leaflet vegetations and progressive regurgitation led to surgical resection of the vegetations.