The proposed study is to investigate a novel approach to the treatment of Ewing sarcoma family of tumours. We are proposing a purely laboratory study using Ewing tumours and cell lines to validate our initial observations that a particular protein (STAT3) is highly active in Ewing family tumours. This observation arose from a screening process we performed on a wide range of childhood tumour types to indentify which tumour type had the highest incidence of activation of STAT3.

STAT3 is potentially of great importance in cancer because its activation both promotes growth of the tumour and cloaks the tumour from detection by the body’s immune system. It is able to do this because it is a master regulator of many separate biological pathways in cancer cells.

Our laboratory is uniquely placed to study this important protein in relation to cancer therapy for two reasons. Firstly we are engaged as collaborators in a programme grant funded by Cancer Research UK at the University of London School of Pharmacy which is focussed on developing new drugs to block STAT3. Already several new lead compounds have been developed, their specific activity has been confirmed on cell lines in our laboratory. No STA3 inhibitors have before now been developed as drugs, so we are in a position in the future to be able to have early pre-clinical and clinical access to further new compounds as they are developed. Secondly, we are one of the few laboratories to have focussed research efforts into cellular immunotherapy of childhood tumours. For example, we are running a clinical trial of vaccine therapy in osteosarcoma and have funding for gene and cellular therapy trials in neuroblastoma and high grade glioma. We are actively developing reagents for targeting tumour antigens expressed in childhood cancers. Our background in clinical gene and cellular therapy means that such reagents can be translated relatively quickly into clinical trials.

Dr John Anderson, Institute of Child Health, London