Aragón will apply advanced therapies in very aggressive cancers in children in four years

Aspanoa and the IIS Aragón organized an informative breakfast in Teruel last week with two Aragonese researchers to explain the latest advances in cancer research

Aragón could begin using advanced therapies with modified CAR-T cells to treat very aggressive tumors in children, within three to five years. These are treatments that in Spain are currently only applied in hospitals in Madrid and Barcelona. This improvement in children's oncological treatment will be possible thanks to the research that is being financed by the Association of Parents of Oncological Children of Aragon (Aspanoa) and which was made known in Teruel thanks to an informative breakfast with two of the leading scientists in this field. , Alberto Jiménez Schuhmacher, head of the Molecular Oncology Group at the Health Research Institute of Aragon (IIS Aragón), and Patricia Sancho, head of the Metabolism and Tumor Stem Cells Group at the same center.

Jiménez Schuhmacher assured that there is an “exciting moment” in the laboratories and that the “decided and continued support” of Aspanoa is generating more and more research in this field.

Regarding the work that he directs, he explained that they began with the design of contrasts “to see cancer” that “stick to a tumor, if it can respond to a type of therapy” and now they are turning that contrast into a new type of therapy. which serves to train the body's defenses, to specifically attack tumors that have very special characteristics.

"These therapies are called advanced therapies, with cells of the immune system and require extraordinary infrastructure that, with the help of Aspanoa, which has been fighting for many years and the IIS of Aragon, and now with the help of the ministries, it will finally be possible to implement ready in Aragon”, highlighted the researcher who estimated that in three, four or five years they will be used with patients.

Research has begun with one of the most aggressive brain tumors for childhood patients, diffuse midline trunk glioma.

“Since this tumor could not be biopsied and has a bleak prognosis, we decided to start with that one, it is where there was the greatest urgency, although it is not the most common, it is one of the hardest, but everything we learn will be useful for others,” explained Jiménez Schuhmacher.

Patricia Sancho explained the role that tumor stem cells have in processes such as metastasis and the research they are doing in this line.

Sancho wanted to convey a message “of hope” about scientific advances in oncology and highlighted the importance of collaboration between everyone -Aspanoa and the IIS of Aragon- to promote research.

Precisely, the researcher commented that the teams that are now working in Aragon on childhood cancer came from other lines of work and have arrived in this field due to this push from the family association. “I work on adult cancer, such as pancreatic cancer, and now with everything we have learned about this type of cancer, we are taking advantage of it and applying it to childhood cancer,” Sancho commented.

Along these same lines, Jiménez Schuhmacher assured that the importance of Aspanoa funds is that it has been a constant help, which has contributed to “attracting talent”, and has also facilitated access to many other national funds to continue advancing in the projects.

The president of Aspanoa, Gabriel Tirado, recalled that this association has been supporting children with cancer and their families for 35 years and that since 2018 they have taken another step and opted for research because it is essential to fight this disease and that it They had wanted to do it from Aragon because it is the Aragonese who support them and because “the best researchers” are in this territory.

Tirado made a very positive assessment of these five years since there are now six children's oncology research projects underway and before there were none. The president of this association assured that they are not going to stop there and they want to continue growing. “Life has presented us with challenges and now our challenge is for Aragón to be a national reference in childhood cancer,” he stressed.

The president of Aspanoa indicated that in the eighties one of every two children with cancer died, while now survival is 82%, however, he pointed out that in some tumors it is between 50% and 60%, so that we must continue investigating. “We want to reach 100% survival and reduce the consequences as much as possible,” he concluded.

The event that was held at the Exhibition Palace was opened by the mayor of the capital, Emma Buj, who recalled that in Teruel when a diagnosis of childhood cancer is given, one has to move to another city and the work of Aspanoa, which it supports with reception apartments and other services. Last year the association served 12 Teruel children and 17 family members.

Source: Teruel Diary

Photos: Patricia Sancho's intervention at the informative day on oncological research, at the Exhibition Palace.