Challenges and Opportunities for Novel Therapeutic Strategies in Pediatric Oncology

Dear Colleagues,

The last decade has seen a revolution in our understanding of the molecular and genetic basis of pediatric cancers. With this advance, molecular and genetic characterization is being integrated into cancer diagnosis, revealing subgroups of pediatric cancers with both prognostic and therapeutic relevance. This enables risk-adoptive therapy, focusing intensive therapy on the most aggressive cancers while refining the treatment for low-risk diseases, resulting in a significant reduction in serious long-term complications.

Cancer immunotherapy changed the prognosis of high-risk malignancies. By targeting cell surface antigens, immunotherapeutic strategies, such as monoclonal antibody, antibody-drug conjugates, T cell engaging bispecific antibody (BsAb), and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells, shifted the treatment paradigm of high-risk neuroblastoma and relapsed/refractory leukemia and lymphoma in pediatric patients. However, immunotherapy has not lived up to its promise in most pediatric solid tumors. How to define which tumors are more likely to respond to immunotherapy and how to activate the immune system via either cell-based or antibody-based strategies remain major challenges.

This Special Issue will highlight the advances in our understanding of pediatric malignancies and in the development of treatments including small-molecular-targeted therapies, BsAb, CART, transplant, radioisotope or drug conjugates, radiotherapy, and photoimmunotherapy and address current challenges and future prospects for a more personalized therapy for pediatric cancer patients.

Dr. Jeong A Park
Dr. Jaume Mora
Guest Editors

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