Embryonal Tumours with Multilayered Rosettes - basic biology and tools for translation

Dr Jens Bunt
(The University of Queensland
Queensland Brain Institute)

Embryonal Tumour with Multiple Rosettes (ETMR) is a highly aggressive type of brain cancer commonly diagnosed in infants. Tragically, fewer than five in every hundred children with this brain cancer survive more than two years after diagnosis as standard treatments seem ineffective.

This could be due to the unique nature of ETMR cells: they resemble very specific immature cells found in the normal developing brain. To enable the identification of better drug targets, the developmental origin and underlying biological causes of ETMR need to be understood.

The research

In this new project led by Dr Bunt from the Queensland Brain Institute, experts in neurodevelopment and in childhood brain cancer join forces to discover what drives the development and growth of ETMR.

To enable discoveries that can be further developed to targeted treatments, Dr Bunt will use samples obtained from the Queensland Children’s Tumour Bank to generate new preclinical models for ETMR.

The potential outcomes

Evidence gained during the consultation process will be used to inform the development and implementation of sustainable services for paediatric brain cancer patients and families to address unmet need, improve equity of access and reduce variation in long-term health outcomes.

The research team

• Dr Jens Bunt – The University of Queensland – Queensland Brain Institute

• Marcel Kool – German Cancer Research Centre, Heidelberg, Deputy Head of Department of Pediatric Neurooncology, International Collaborator and expert in genomics of pediatric brain tumours including ETMR.

• Professor Linda J Richards, The University of Queensland – Queensland Brain Institute – Deputy Director (Research)

• CCABCR PhD Student

• Caity Bridges – The University of Queensland, Research Technician

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