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December 25, 2009, Vancouver BC - A New Target Gene in Pediatric Brain Tumors Has Been Identified

Our researchers have identified a new target gene in pediatric brain tumors. It is called YB-1 and the same gene is important in adult brain tumors. It is also the same protein that is important in breast cancer based on our researchers' previous work.... CLICK HERE TO READ THIS PAPER!

December 25, 2009, Vancouver BC - A Promising New Target for the Treatment of Pediatric Rhabdomyosarcomas

Rhabdomyosarcoma, consisting of alveolar (aRMS) and
embryonal (eRMS) subtypes, is the most common type
of sarcoma in children. Currently, there are no targeted
drug therapies available for rhabdomyosarcoma. In searching for new molecular therapeutic targets, we carried out genome-wide small interfering RNA (siRNA) library screens targeting human phosphatases (n=206) and kinases (n=691) initially against an aRMS cell line, RH30. Sixteen phosphatases and 50 kinases were identified based on
growth inhibition after 72 hours... CLICK HERE TO READ THIS PAPER!

December 3, 2009, Vancouver BC - New Hope for Kids with Leukemia

Vancouver Sun (October 13, 2009) - The addition of a new "targeted" drug more than doubled survival rates for children with a rare but formerly quite lethal subtype of leukemia, according to a North American study led by B.C. Children's Hospital oncologist Dr. Kirk Schultz.

The study was submitted to a cancer journal for publication earlier than expected because of the stunning results showing three-year survival rates of 87 per cent compared to 30 to 35 per cent before use of the drug called imatinib (commercial name, Gleevec). Further analysis of the data is now looking at whether survival rates are just as good at four years and beyond.

Two-year-old Luke Derksen is one B.C. patient who's been on it since being diagnosed with leukemia just before Thanksgiving last year.
Luke hadn't been born when the study took place but he's now taking Gleevec, crushed up in the only medium he finds tolerable — chocolate soy milk.

Kama Derksen, Luke's mother, said she shudders to even think about how poor the Chilliwack toddler's prognosis might have been had he been diagnosed before the study showed improved odds with the addition of Gleevec in the type of cancer he has - Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ALL).

However, Derksen, who has four other young children besides Luke, said in an interview that while she and her husband occasionally fret about worst case scenarios, they're completely upbeat this Thanksgiving because "we look at our son and see how well he is responding to treatment and it's like a miracle."

This time last year, Luke felt miserable and had reverted to crawling because of fatigue. When admitted to Children's Hospital last October, Schultz and his many co-researchers were serendipitously readying their study paper for publication submission. No time was wasted in getting Luke on the drug, which costs the health care system about $80,000 per year per patient.

"It's been exciting to be part of this study. The results were much better than initially expected," said Schultz, who oversaw the trial funded by the U.S. government-financed National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health. The Phase 2 trial was conducted at 20 cancer centres, mostly in the U.S. (only two in Canada, Halifax and Vancouver).

"Using imatinib plus chemotherapy had a synergistic type of interaction. Although it's very promising, we need to do more follow up to get to the five-year survival data and determine the long-term survival.

"We submitted our study for publication (in the Journal of Clinical Oncology) earlier instead of waiting because the data was so exciting and this type of leukemia is such high risk," added Schultz, who's also head of childhood cancer research at the Child and Family Research Institute.

Asked if the study drug is now going to be standard treatment, Schultz said because it's the first such study, it may not yet convince everyone in the oncology field.
Schultz said he doesn't know if every similar patient everywhere will be automatically placed on the drug.

"As this is a relatively seminal paper for this indication, it is still controversial. Nothing is ever open and shut in medicine or science. On the other hand, this is the first study that supports a change in practice and I think a majority of people will be changing their practice."

While there's been plenty of progress in treatment for children with leukemia over the past few decades, the subtype, which Luke has, is so rare that only about six children and 90 adults get it each year in Canada. Historically, less than a third of children survived with chemotherapy alone while those who also got a matched stem-cell transplant might survive in up to two-thirds of cases.

There were a total of 157 patients, aged one to 21 years, enrolled in the trial from 2002 to 2006. They were divided into comparison groups and those who got the imatinib for the longest duration (280 continuous days, plus their intensive chemotherapy regimen), had the best outcomes.

Only one Vancouver patient qualified for the study using Gleevec, which falls into a class of therapies called targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI).

Schultz said researchers are analysing data to measure whether imatinib prolongs the duration of disease-free survival or if it truly delivers a long term cure. There are various studies around the world looking at whether the addition of TKI drugs might spare patients potentially toxic therapies like radiation and multiple chemotherapy agents.

"By using the targeted drug in combination with traditional chemotherapy, the results suggest that we've been able to improve survival enough that we may no longer have to do blood and bone marrow transplants for this disease," said Schultz, adding that the drug is given in the first two to three weeks (after diagnosis) and continued to the end of therapy two and a half years later.

He said the Children's Oncology Group (COG) is evaluating a second generation TKI called Dasatinib. "We are also in the process of developing a larger international trial with our European colleagues to see if we can look at less toxic chemotherapy combinations to reduce toxicity."

July 3, 2009, Vancouver BC - Business Plan for our Childhood Cancer Research Program & the Michael Cuccione Laboratories at the Research Institute at BC Children's Hospital is released. Click here to read complete details in PDF format.

October 1, 2008 - Cancer Research Update from the Child & Family Research Institute

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is the most common soft tissue sarcoma of childhood. It is estimated that every year, approximately 250 children in the United States are diagnosed with this disease with two thirds of these patients being under ten years old. RMS is divided into two histologic subtypes; embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma (ERMS) and alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, with the latter being more aggressive. Current treatment for this disease includes chemotherapy, radiation and surgery. However, response to these agents can be significantly hindered by the location of tumors, which may be deeply embedded within tissues making it difficult to reach by conventional therapies. An alternative approach that we can take is to design molecular targeted therapies that specifically target cancer cells displaying abnormal molecular signatures. Such small molecular inhibitor could be used alone or in combination with other treatments to enhance therapeutic effects. To gain a deeper understanding of the pathogenesis of RMS, we sought to determine the proteins, which when inhibited, results in suppression of tumor cell growth and induction of tumor cell death by performing high content screening (HCS) on RMS cells. From the list of proteins that were potentially important to RMS growth, we narrowed the focus of our study to this one protein named PTP-alpha, which we have further investigated. We aim to elucidate the mechanism by which this protein contributes to RMS growth, survival and disease progression.

In addition to investigating RMS pathogenesis, we have also launched another project to study pediatric glioblastoma multiforme (pGBM). pGBM is a devastating brain tumor with a very low survival rate (20%). This disease is particularly difficult to treat in that the tumor cells are often very resistant to chemotherapy and the developing brain is susceptible to damage as a result of treatment. The inability of most drugs to cross the blood brain barrier presents another challenge yet to be overcome. Realizing the limit of conventional therapies, we aim to study proteins that function abnormally in pGBM and may lead to the development of this disease. We have characterized a protein named Y-box binding protein-1 (YB-1) extensively in pGBM, in the hope of gaining a deeper understanding of its functional role in cancer pathogenesis. In vitro studies have demonstrated that inhibiting YB-1 leads to decreased cancer cell growth and increased tumor cell death, which has subsequently been confirmed in animal experiments. We have also designed compounds inhibiting YB-1 function and carried out pre-clinical studies to examine the biological effects of drug treatments. This is an important ongoing project and is of great value in that it may eventually shed light to the development of novel and more effective therapies that could be used to treat this challenging disease.

May 15, 2008, Vancouver, BC - The Province supports the Michael Cuccione Childhood Cancer Research Program

New Release: Office of the Premier, Ministry of Health

The Province will provide $2 million in one-time funding to the Michael Cuccione Foundation to support research into new treatments for childhood cancer, Premier Gordon Campbell announced today.

"We are committed to promoting and supporting research that will improve cancer outcomes, to ensure that children with cancer and their families have the best treatment possible,"said Premier Campbell. "This $2 million will be used to research new, cutting-edge strategies for treating childhood cancer – to develop highly specific treatments that will have low side-effects."

"The $2 million will be used to complete the Michael Cuccione Laboratory for Pediatric Oncology,"said Gloria Cuccione, Michael's mother and foundation executive director. "With this dedicated oncology research laboratory, the Child & Family Research Institute at BC Children's Hospital will be able to attract world-renowned scientists who are leaders in the search for a cure for childhood cancers."

The research will be carried out at the Child & Family Research Institute affiliated with BC Children's Hospital. Clinical trials will also be conducted at the hospital.

Founded in 1997, the Michael Cuccione Foundation works to fund childhood cancer research, provide emotional support to cancer patients and their families as well as conduct motivational speaking engagements throughout Canada and around the world. The foundation was established by Michael Cuccione, who after being diagnosed with cancer at age 9, began a personal fight against childhood cancer and challenged others to collectively make a difference. Michael beat cancer but died at age 16 from respiratory failure related to his cancer treatments.

The aim of the foundation is to establish the Michael Cuccione Childhood Cancer Research program that will be the best in Canada and a leader in the world.

Every year, one child in 8,000 under the age of 17 will develop cancer. Twenty years ago, 70 per cent of children diagnosed with cancer died. Today, due to advances in research, over 80 per cent of them survive. This improving survival rate creates a growing need for long-term follow-up of late effects.

Researchers at the Child & Family Research Institute, the only centre for childhood cancer research in British Columbia, are working to further improve survival rates and to develop targeted treatments that minimize harmful side-effects on the child.

For this rate to drop further, continued research is needed – as well as a continued commitment to funding research into childhood cancer and its treatment.

"Childhood cancers are rare and affect about 150 children in British Columbia each year,"said Dr. Kirk Schultz, head of the oncology research program at the Child & Family Research Institute and pediatric oncologist at BC Children's Hospital. "The best way to control cancer in our children is an accurate diagnosis and safe, effective treatment. The research grant from the Province will help, as we know little about what causes childhood cancer, which limits opportunities for prevention."

The Province has invested more than $1.5 billion in research and innovation since 2001, including significant investments in research to improve treatments and seek cures for major health-care challenges such as cancer, depression and spinal cord injuries.

Government is committed to improving health services delivery for all children and youth in B.C.  In April 2008, the BC Children's Hospital Foundation joined government in announcing a fundraising campaign towards a new acute/critical care building for BC Children's Hospital.

By Lara Gerrits, The Tri-City News, May 15, 2008: Cuccione's dream furthered with $2 million from province

Michael Cuccione, who co-authored with his grandmother the book There are Survivors, about his battle with cancer, also founded the Michael Cuccione Foundation to fund child cancer research. Cuccione, a Coquitlam resident, beat cancer but died in 2001 at 16 from respiratory failure related to his treatments. This week, Premier Gordon Campbell announced $2 million in funding to the foundation to support research into new treatments at the Michael Cuccione Laboratory for Pediatric Oncology at BC Children's Hospital. Tri-City News File Photo

Michael Cuccione met a number of celebrities throughout his 16 years of life.

Britney Spears.
David Hasselhoff.
The Pope.

And while meeting Gordon Campbell during his tenure as opposition leader likely wasn't quite as thrilling, its effect was apparently quite profound.

This week, Premier Campbell announced the province would contribute $2 million towards Cuccione's campaign to cure childhood cancer.

The funding will support research into new treatments by helping the Michael Cuccione Foundation attract a star researcher to the Michael Cuccione Laboratory for Pediatric Oncology at BC Children's Hospital.

The foundation was established by Cuccione who, after diagnosed with cancer at age nine, began a personal fight against the disease and challenged others to collectively make a difference. The foundation that bears his name works to fund childhood cancer research, provide emotional support to patients and their families, and conduct motivational speaking engagements throughout the country and world.

A member of a spoof boy band in an MTV series, Cuccione, a Coquitlam resident, beat cancer but died in 2001 at age 16 from respiratory failure related to his treatments.

"He had a gorgeous smile, so I can just see that smile now, just huge and happy," his mom and foundation executive director Gloria Cuccione said following the funding announcement. "We were blessed with a really incredible young man that touched all of our lives forever and he certainly left his mark, and we know what he wants... I believe he works through God through us."

The funds will be used to complete the pediatric oncology laboratory and bring on a "star" researcher to "take things to the next level," she said, noting a top candidate could be in place by the end of May.

Gloria Cuccione said her son met Campbell during fundraising events in the late 1990s, and the then opposition leader would offer his business card and support. Ten years later, after raising awareness of childhood cancer and establishing a number of goals, Gloria Cuccione said she thought, "I think it is time. Maybe we'll call the premier and see if he'll meet with us."

He did.

"Nothing can be more devastating to a family than to learn that a child has been diagnosed with cancer," Campbell said in a press release. "This $2 million will be used to develop new strategies for treating childhood cancer, to develop highly specific treatments that will have low side effects."

The program will be developed at the Child and Family Research Institute at BC Children's Hospital; clinical trials will also be conducted there.

In Canada, close to 850 children younger than 14 years old are diagnosed with cancer every year and around 135 die from the disease. In Canadian children over the age of one month, cancer is the leading disease-related cause of death. While children with cancer now have an opportunity for a cure, a significant proportion of survivors experience lifelong side effects as a result of the cancer or its treatments.

"Michael had that vision to help children and the babies," Gloria Cuccione said. "Really, there was little to nothing being done 10 years ago and now look how far we've come."

May 12, 2008, Vancouver, BC - Cancer Update

After years of telling people chemotherapy is the only way to try ('try', being the key word) to eliminate cancer, there is finally an alternative way. 

1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable size.

2. Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a person's lifetime.

3. When the person's immune system is strong the cancer cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and forming tumors.

4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has multiple nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic, environmental, food and lifestyle factors.

5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing diet and including supplements will strengthen the immune system.

6. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing cancer cells and also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells in the bone marrow, gastro-intestinal tract etc, and can cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.

7. Radiation while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars and damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.

8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor destruction.

9. When the body has too much toxic burden from chemotherapy and radiation the immune system is either compromised or destroyed, hence the person can succumb to various kinds of infections and complications.

10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to mutate and become resistant and difficult to destroy. Surgery can also cause cancer cells to spread to other sites.

11. An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply.

CANCER CELLS FEED ON:

a. Sugar is a cancer-feeder. By cutting off sugar it cuts off one important food supply to the cancer cells. Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal,Spoonful, etc are made with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural substitute would be Manuka honey or molasses but only in very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in color. Better alternative is Bragg's aminos or sea salt.

b. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and substituting with unsweetened soya milk cancer cells are being starved.

c. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little chicken rather than beef or pork. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer.

d. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds, nuts and a little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment. About 20% can be from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells. To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C).

e. Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high caffeine. Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer-fighting properties. Water-best to drink purified water, or filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in tap water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it.

12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the intestines become putrefied and leads to more toxic buildup.

13. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows the body's killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.

14. Some supplements build up the immune system (IP6, Flor-ssence, Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, EFAs etc.) to enable the body's own killer cells to destroy cancer cells. Other supplements like vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body's normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells.

15. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit. A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor. Anger, unforgiveness and bitterness put the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and enjoy life.

16. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercising daily, and deep breathing help to get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer cells.

Michael Cuccione Foundation Becomes a Charity of Choice by Unlocking Secrets For Women

We are so grateful for being the charity of the choice for the event through Unlocking Secrets For Women hosted and created by Candace Newton. This event was very educational on women's health issues and about the major links between childhood cancer and breast cancer. It was a true highlight to have Stedam Graham as a guest speaker. Watch Video

There was a special VIP party with Stedman he was a true gentleman, patient and kind to everyone! He carries with him such wonderful presence! You can certainly see why Ophra has kept him in her life for all these years. I believe he left Vancouver extremely inspired himself by the touching moments that happened that evening. He was so taken by a beautiful Jade book called A STONE OF HOPE that was carved by an amazing artist Cosimo Geracitano. This special piece of art took over two year of Cosmo's life to sculptured. In his book each page was carved separately and is displaying some of the most powerful and wonderful people in this world such as Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King Junior. It is fascinating and the only one in the world. Please visit www.colossalcreations.com to be inspired by this wonderful art.

Stedman was also so respectful to watch my husband Domenic and I speak about our precious son Michael. It always inspires me the way we connect in this world for a higher purpose! Watch Video

OMNI Television Partners with Michael Cuccione Foundation

The Michael Cuccione Foundation has been selected as one of twelve charities to receive a 4 week promotional gift from OMNI Television and the participating sponsors of Companies That Care, a program designed to give voice to those making a difference in our community. Click here for details.

We Have the Life Sentence After the Hope is Gone!

Gloria Cuccione, Executive Director of Michael Cuccione Foundation, is interviewed by Omni Television. This 30 minutes interview aired on February 15, 2007 on Channel 10 in lower mainland and channel 7 on Vancouver island.

"...I want to thank Omni television for there amazing support in covering the importance of this cause that is affecting more families than you know. We just find it too hard to talk about. This is a very emotional interview in fact I can't even remember some of things I said but it was all the way I feel. The truth will set you free! As hard as it is to talk about losing our children we need to make people aware of what our precious innocent children go through when they are hit with this terrible disease. Our children go through this physically and emotionally.

We Have the Life Sentence After the Hope is Gone!..."

Gloria Cuccione, Mother of Michael Cuccione

The Beat 94.5FM Interviews Michael Cuccione Foundation Directors

Gloria Cuccione, Executive Director of the Michael Cuccione Foundation, and Sal Audia, Member of the Board of Directors, were interviewed by The Beat 94.5FM and talked about the 7th Annual Skate For A Cure™ event. (Aired on February 12, 2007).

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