Chimaeric T cells for the treatment of paediatric cancers. CHILDHOPE Leukaemias are the most common cancers affecting children while malignant lymphomas – including non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) – comes in third position after brain tumours. A significant number of children with leukaemia/lymphomas still fail current therapies. The aim of the CHILDHOPE project is to develop a safe and efficient adoptive immunotherapy for children with advanced or refractory malignancies. CHILDHOPE particularly focuses on three paediatric tumours: acute B-lineage lymphoblastic leukaemia, non-hodgkin B-lineage lymphoma and acute myeloid leukaemia. The CHILDHOPE project is a new approach in paediatric cancer treatment since it brings from bench to bedside (and back) an innovative technology as yet never applied in children with advanced or refractory haematopoietic malignancies. The CHILDHOPE translational research project will focus on:
Improving and testing the efficacy and the safety of anti-leukaemia/lymphoma chimaeric T cells in relevant preclinical models in vitro and in vivo in mice
Scaling-up this technology to numbers suitable for a clinical application in children with haematopoietic malignancies.
Based on biological material obtained from our preclinical models and from children treated with these genetically engineered T cells, dissecting the interface between the host’s tumour and immune cells and use this knowledge to understand the mechanisms of anti-tumour action, validate novel targets and diagnostic tools specific to children affected with leukaemia or lymphomas.
The CHILDHOPE project (http://www.childhope.eu) is built on the excellence of a network of EU-based partners with a broad experience in the field of paediatric haematology and oncology, immunology and cell & gene therapies and integrates the international confederation of parents of children with cancer and an SME specialised in the project management.
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