New Years always feel like a new beginning. A clean slate. While our current circumstances and struggles may not change when the clock strikes midnight, we can look ahead with hope. Although pediatric cancer research faces obstacles that can make progress seem slow, progress is being made nonetheless.
These are just a few trends in pediatric cancer treatment and care that make us believe in a brighter future for these incredible kids!
Today, there’s a strong emphasis not only on curing cancer but on preserving the mental and emotional well-being of the patient. There’s an understanding now that children can develop cancer-related PTSD. There are more resources now than ever to address a child’s emotional needs. Similarly, the mental and emotional health of the child is considered with treatment options. Certain procedures may be traumatic.
More and more studies and clinical trials are focused on the long-term quality of life in childhood cancer patients. When we address not just cancer but the whole person, we see better outcomes.
Advancements in treatments and medicine are working to address short and long-term side effects. For example, progress has been made in advancing chemoprotective drugs – that is, drugs that prevent or minimize some of the harmful side effects of chemotherapy treatment. These treatments are working to prevent mucositis (mouth sores), cardiovascular damage, and hearing/ear damage.
New drugs like pegfilgrastim and filgrastim work to help patients produce more white blood cells after chemo and radiation therapies. White blood cells play a key role in fighting off disease and strengthening the immune system.
Modern cancer treatment isn’t one-size-fits-all. Treatment plans are increasingly complex and targeted to ensure the best outcomes for the patient. Radiation exposure is a significant obstacle, as the most common cancer treatments employ radiation. For children, this can have unforeseen consequences. In adults, it matters less as there is more emphasis on quality of life than quantity. However, in children, both are important.
Treatment today is more targeted. With a combination of new drugs, surgeries, and proton therapy, pediatric cancer patients see reduced exposure to unnecessary radiation, particularly on healthy tissue that can be caught in the crossfire.
One of the most impressive advancements in pediatric cancer treatment is immunotherapy. Doctors are finding that they can manipulate and engineer the immune system to target certain cancerous tumors. For example, certain antibodies can be used to target leukemia, something particularly beneficial for patients that see a leukemia relapse.
CAR T-cell therapies harvest healthy cells from the patient and engineer them to attack leukemia, too. T-cell therapy is one of the most promising treatments in immunotherapy, if only because it greatly reduces the need for chemo and radiation therapies.
As a result, children can more readily avoid the side effects of treatment, some of which are life-altering.
One of the biggest concerns parents and care teams have is preserving the patient’s future fertility. Chemo and radiation can result in infertility or other challenges in conceiving and sustaining pregnancies. In the past, the only real options to preserve future fertility were through sperm banking for males and egg harvesting for females.
Today, doctors can harvest the entire ovary and preserve testicular tissue. Rather than saving a limited amount of sperm or eggs, they’re able to preserve the entire organ or production system. Though fertility seems like a long-term rather than an immediate concern, doctors, parents, and pediatric cancer patients want to be able to have the option and opportunity to start a family in the future.
The advancement of technology and procedures in this sector provide more options for patients that wish to preserve their fertility.
Though pediatric cancer treatment has a long way to go, we’re so encouraged by the advancement in care – from specific therapies and treatment options to a philosophy of care for the whole person – not just their physical bodies. This is what creates real cancer kickers: they’re not just curing cancer, they’re going on to live long, fulfilling lives that aren’t limited by these terrible diseases.
And that’s worth hoping for in 2023!