Video
Tyler Trent, Research Advocate and IU Precision Health Patient
Tyler Trent talks about the importance of pediatric research and how genomic sequencing helped to prolong his life.
Childhood sarcoma is a type of cancer characterized by tumors in the nerves, muscles or bones. It is particularly prevalent in Indiana, where places such as Johnson County have a higher than average rate of childhood sarcomas. The IU Precision Health Initiative’s childhood sarcoma research team is planning to launch a clinical trial testing molecularly targeted maintenance therapy for metastasized sarcoma at the time of diagnosis. Unlike adults, children do not receive maintenance therapy after chemotherapy and surgery. The goal of the study is to develop curative therapies for rhabdomyosarcoma, osteosarcoma and Ewing’s sarcoma.
In addition, the Pediatric Precision Genomics clinic, established as a result of the Precision Health Initiative, allows IU researchers to test the DNA of every child at IU Health with aggressive or relapsed sarcomas. This enhanced capability, combined with the ability to assess a child’s RNA and proteomics, has led to the identification of a potentially useful FDA-approved treatment in greater than 90 percent of cases—up 20 percent since the launch of the Grand Challenge.
Team Leadership
The childhood sarcoma team is led by IU School of Medicine’s Jamie Renbarger, MD.
Learn More About Pediatric Cancer
Listen to IU School of Medicine pediatric oncologist Jamie Renbarger, MD, talk about childhood cancer, why pediatric sarcomas are so challenging to treat, and how precision medicine is providing new hope to patients. The Healthcare Triage podcast is hosted by IU School of Medicine faculty member and New York Times contributor Aaron Carroll, MD.