Research is a long-term
investment. Science moves slowly and the time it takes to
get from breakthrough to bedside is also long. But the
payoffs of research are vital. These research stories below
highlight some of the milestones on the quest to find a cure
for childhood cancer.
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What did you do
last summer?
When Alexandra McManus first started undergraduate
studies at McGill University three years ago, she
says she "had zero interest in research." But things
have changed. "Most students don’t know enough about
research," explains Alex. "They think it’s dull or
boring but they just don’t know."
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Teaming up to fight
the toughest childhood cancers
The battle against childhood cancer got a serious
boost last February when the Kids Cancer Care
Foundation of Alberta (KCCFA) made a $2.5 gift to
the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation. To be
paid over five years, the donation will support
research into bone marrow transplant and
experimental and applied therapeutics at the Alberta
Children’s Hospital, University of Calgary and
Southern Alberta Cancer Research Institute.
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Research looks at
the effects of childhood cancer on grandparents
The Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta (KCCFA)
today announced its first Nursing and Allied Health
Research Awards, which will be awarded to clinical
researchers and health care professionals at the
University of Calgary and Alberta Children’s
Hospital whose research show promise for improving
the lives and outcomes for Alberta children with
cancer and their families.
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Cancer cell grown
in Petri dish offers hope for kids with rare and
aggressive brain cancer
The Kids Cancer Care Foundation of Alberta announced
today the research findings of cancer scientist and
physician Dr. Aru Narendran and his colleagues,
which were published on July 24, 2008 in the Journal
of Neuro-Oncology. The Calgary-based team has
developed a unique method for growing atypical
teratoid/rhabdoid tumour (AT/RT) in a laboratory
setting. AT/RT is a rare and aggressive brain cancer
that grows in infants and small children. The
survival rate for children under three at diagnosis
is less than 10 per cent.
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Basic Research: The
Foundation of Medicine
Cells, molecules, proteins, genes — the building
blocks of life and the fodder of basic research.
“But what,” you may ask, “do they have to do with my
health?” “How in the world does basic research
translate into better cancer treatments for my son?”
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Laying the
Foundation for Tomorrow’s Breakthroughs
If not for research, Paddon Thompson might not be
alive today. Diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour
at age 12, Paddon is the reason behind his family’s
major donation to the Kids Cancer Care Foundation of
Alberta. more |
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Second Time Around:
Fighting Cancer from the Lab
Cancer survivors and former KCCFA spokeskids Chris
Blackmore and Jane Fowler found themselves fighting
cancer again last summer. But this time the battle
had them losing their pyjamas and slippers for white
lab coats at a U of C research lab.
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Taking the High
Road to Fight Childhood Cancer
Hanford Deglint’s parents couldn’t possibly have known just how fitting
his name would one day be. more |
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Master Gamer:
Fighting Cancer with the World’s most Expensive
Computer Game
Unreal, Flight Simulator and Lords of the Realm.
What do these top-rated multi-player computer games
have in common with cancer research? A lot more than
you might think. more |
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Using the Reovirus
to combat brain cancer in kids
Visionary, virus engineer and pizza-for-breakfast
kind of guy, Dr. Peter Forsyth is a man with
passion. A member of the Cancer Biology Research
Group and an associate professor with the
departments of oncology and clinical neurosciences
at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Calgary
and Tom Baker Cancer Centre, Dr. Forsyth studies two
things: the molecular make-up of invasive brain
tumours and the potential of using viruses to attack
brain cancer. more |
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KCCFA supports
international prizewinner
U of C researcher Dr. Aru Narendran is the 2003
winner of the International Society for Pediatric
Oncology Odile Schweisguth Prize, one of the world’s
most prestigious awards in pediatric oncology.
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