Pediatrics Committee

The field of pediatric neuro-oncology continues to advance and expand with focused work on targeted molecular therapies, immunotherapies, local therapies, toxicity limitations for our young patients, long-term quality of life support and an expanding focus on the AYA population.

Many recent developments are worth noting: The NCI Cancer Moonshot Research Initiatives continue to include pediatric immunotherapy discovery and development and research on the major drivers of childhood cancers with focus on fusion oncoproteins. We have three major dedicated pediatric CNS tumor consortia (PBTC, PNOC and CONNECT) running multi-institution clinical trials; and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network has now released its “Guidelines for Pediatric Central Nervous System Cancers,” which includes medulloblastoma, and now high-grade glioma. Pediatric neurosurgery has been represented by Gerald Grant, Renee Reynolds and Anthony Wang in these efforts.

We have much further to go: The most recent data from the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States now describe brain and other CNS tumors to be the most common cancer as well as the most common cause of cancer death in children and adolescents. An increasing number of national multi-disciplinary think tanks and disease-focused expert groups are focused on the best way to translate the rapidly growing molecular data into the most effective clinical trials and treatments for our patients. There are also ongoing efforts to organize global outreach support and education with international tumor boards. We continue to strive towards the best possible care of pediatric neuro-oncology patients with a collaborative network of clinicians and scientists as well as growing expertise in clinical trials, translational development, pharmaceutical discovery and data science surrounding CNS tumors.