The Ty Louis Campbell (TLC) Foundation partnered with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation to support a three-year preclinical research project led by Dr. Samuel Cheshier at Stanford University and Huntsman Cancer Institute, providing $330,000 in funding. Based on highly promising preclinical results, TLC also contributed $15,000 in seed funding to help launch a Phase 1 clinical trial, which is now open for enrollment (PNOC025).
Dr. Cheshier’s research focuses on using combinations of immune-based therapies to treat malignant pediatric brain tumors. These therapies activate immune cells called macrophages, enabling them to recognize and destroy cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue. This targeted approach has the potential to reduce reliance on traditional treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation, which can be less specific and carry significant long-term side effects for children.
The study centers on combination therapies using the antibodies anti-CD47 and anti-CD40. In preclinical mouse models, these therapies demonstrated a strong synergistic effect, outperforming either treatment alone. These findings highlight the promise of combination immunotherapy as a more precise and effective strategy for treating aggressive pediatric brain tumors.
A recent report on this great work was published in Cureus, October 2020. In March 2017, results were reported in various medical journals. Read more. A report was also published in the Wiley Online Library (April 2016) citing some of the resulting work from this study pertaining to glioblastoma. Read more.
