 The
Prayers
from Maria Foundation
funds research into cures for pediatric
high-grade gliomas. This statement
has three implications for our grant
awards. First, we plan to fund research
that narrowly focuses on curing gliomas,
which are a specific form of brain
tumor that starts in the body’s
glial cells. Second we look to fund
research that addresses the special
case of pediatric gliomas.
Third, we will give preferential consideration
to research on innovative treatments
for the particularly deadly category
of gliomas known as high-grade
gliomas.
Gliomas
make up about half of the malignant
brain tumors that are diagnosed,
and they are
the second greatest cause of cancer
deaths among young people. Gliomas
are particularly deadly because
they “do not have discrete
margins” and tend to be diffuse,
and therefore are not generally
surgically curable.1
Even though gliomas are such a significant
cause of the tragic death of young
people, research on gliomas is grossly
underfunded.
Because of this sparse research,
relatively little is known about
gliomas, and pediatric gliomas are
of particular concern because the
knowledge we do have does not necessarily
apply to children. Pediatric gliomas
have different causes than adult
gliomas, and therefore responses
to treatment are also significantly
different. The five year survival
rate associated with childhood gliomas
has been estimated at roughly 5-15%,
whereas for adults it is 20-40%.2
Therefore pediatric gliomas should
be researched separately. Of all
pediatric gliomas, the most deadly
are “high-grade” gliomas.
High-grade
gliomas (which include supratentorial
high-grade astrocytomas and diffuse
brainstem gliomas) make up 15-20%
of all childhood central nervous
system tumors.3 Standard
cancer treatments have poor outcomes
in treating high-grade gliomas,
and there is dire need of innovative
treatments for these dangerous forms
of cancer.
We
follow Fisher and Buffler1
in looking to fund treatments that
target differentiated forms of gliomas
(rather than lumping them all together),
as well as those research projects
that look to understand the interactions
between different treatments with
each other and with other factors
such as a patient’s environment
and diet.
The Prayers
from Maria Foundation
offers two-year grants. Applications
are considered under a review process
led by the foundation’s medical
advisory board.
NOTES
1 Fisher,
P.G. & Buffler, P.A. (2005) “Malignant
Gliomas in 2005: Where to GO From
Here?” Journal of the American
Medical Association, 2005; Vol. 293,
No.5.
2 Tamber,
M.S. & Rutka, J.T. (2003) “Pediatric
supratentorial high-grade gliomas,”
Neurosurg Focus, Vol.14, No.2.
3 Broniscer,
A. & Gajjar, A. (2004) “Supratentorial
high-grade astrocytoma and diffuse
brainstem glioma: two challenges for
the pediatric oncologist.” The
Oncologist, Vol. 9, No. 2. |
