Real Reform Should Protect Patients Like Taylor
April 1, 2005 08:34

13-month-old Taylor McCormack of Massachusetts died after her surgery was needlessly held up when the attending physician went grocery shopping and then napped through repeated pages. As the physician slept, a junior resident was left in charge of Taylor's care while test results showed her condition growing more life-threatening. The state Board of Registration in Medicine later reprimanded the hospital for delaying the toddler's surgery, resulting in her death.

Since then, her father John McCormack, a state trooper, persuaded Massachusetts legislators to enact Taylor's Law, which gives families the right to attend hearings when doctors and hospitals are being investigated for medical wrongdoing and holds them more accountable to public scrutiny. Now he is campaigning for Congress and other states to enact similar legislation.

Drug Manufacturers Put Safety of Children Last
http://www.atla.org/ConsumerMediaResources/Tier3/press_room/FACTS/health/DrugsAndChildren.aspx

Every parent wants to ensure that their child receives adequate and safe protection from diseases. Vaccines and drugs, which are administered to children to prevent a host of ailments, such as chicken pox, measles, and asthma, can aid in this effort. However, disturbing facts are emerging about the safety of these vaccines and medications, which are subject to limited?if any?tests for pediatric use.

Medications that can be processed normally by adult metabolisms often have dangerous side effects in young people. But pharmaceutical manufacturers claim that such tests are too expensive and time-consuming. That is a risky gamble to take with the lives of children.

Stuttgart Daily Leader, Tue, 12 Apr 2005 2:29 PM PDT

LITTLE ROCK -- When 9-year-old Abby Grant from Rogers was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, on July 1, 2004 she decided it wasn't going to get her down. Abby and her family took this opportunity to give back and make a difference for others struggling with cancer.

Medical News Today, Sat, 16 Apr 2005 4:17 PM PDT

Childhood Cancer Diagnosis Lasts a Lifetime . Andy Gegg was only a few weeks shy of his sixteenth birthday when he was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma. After several surgeries, radiation therapy and chemotherapy; Andy successfully completed his cancer treatment.

WJAC 6 Johnstown, Mon, 18 Apr 2005 5:34 AM PDT An Altoona couple is recognized for their contributions to helping raise money for childhood cancer.

The Chronicle Online, Tue, 19 Apr 2005 3:43 AM PDT

Rose Proctor is a typical second grader. A little bit shy, she enjoys playing on the computer and someday hopes to become a brain surgeon, a crime scene investigator or a repairperson.

A protein called transferrin that normally delivers iron into cells is modified to also smuggle into tumor cells siRNA (short interfering RNA) encased in nano-sized sugar polymers. The siRNA was designed to target a specific growth-promoting gene called EWS-FLI1 that's active only in Ewing's sarcoma tumors.

To test their new delivery system, the scientists targeted tumor cells from the patients of Ewing's sarcoma, a rare and often deadly bone cancer that generally strikes young adults. Despite aggressive therapy, about 40 percent of patients with Ewing's family tumors and 95 percent with metastases die as a result of their disease.

Scientists now recognize that Ewing's sarcoma results when two chromosomes break and trade their genetic content in what's technically called a "translocation," activating the oncogene EWS-FLI1 which triggers the tumor growth characteristic for this cancer.

The scientists then tried their novel technology in laboratory mice grafted with human Ewing's sarcoma tumors. Following three consecutive days of treatment, the scientists observed strong, but transient, inhibition of tumor growth.

Future experiments will combine the novel delivery system with small molecular anti-tumor agents, with hopes of creating a new and effective way to treat Ewing's sarcoma and other tumors in the clinic.

http://www.physorg.com/news3800.html

http://www.wndu.com/news/mommo/042005/mommo_41673.php

The prognosis for children with bone cancer has greatly improved throughout the years. For example, Jenna Keen is a very active 13-year-old. When she was four, she was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma in her leg.

Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance, Wed, 20 Apr 2005 4:00 AM PDT

Arrowhead Research Corporation announced today that its majority-owned subsidiary, Insert Therapeutics, has released data demonstrating effective anti-cancer results in animal studies of its lead product, IT-101, against various cancers, including pancreatic cancer, colon cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, and Ewing's Sarcoma, a cancer primarily affecting children and young adults.

Arrowhead Research Corp.'s (ARWR) anti-cancer compound demonstrated effectiveness in animal studies. Insert Therapeutics, Inc. Chief Scientific Officer, Thomas Schluep, Sc.D., presented data today demonstrating the improved biodistribution and preclinical efficacy in vivo of its lead anticancer compound, IT-101. Insert Therapeutics Describes In Vivo Performance and Versatility of Lead Anticancer Compound; Preclinical Results announced.

It wasn't easy. Clancy had both chemo and radiation therapies for Ewing's sarcoma, a rare bone cancer that mainly occurs in children and young adults. But she said she got through by making light of things and having her family's constant support.

"You can never give up on yourself," she said. "You keep dreaming."

http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/News/Neighbors/DailyJournal/03AreaDJ01042705.htm