KCA Infrastructure
KCA supports for researchers with established clinical trial centres, pharmacokinetic assessment services, biobanking and childhood cancer survivor banks, bioinformatics and biostatistics services across its Randwick and Westmead sites.
Pharmacokinetic assessment aimed at reducing toxicity and enhancing efficiency in child cancer patients undergoing therapy
Many anti-cancer drugs have a narrow therapeutic window and are associated with significant toxicity. Current dosing methods are generally inadequate and may result in either life-threatening toxicity or impaired disease control. This is particularly evident in babies and young children. Correct dosing is also a challenge for the adolescent and young adult population due to pubertal changes. Through studying the pharmacokinetics (PK, dose vs. concentration relationship) and pharmacodynamics (PD, concentration vs. effect relationship) of these drugs it is possible to identify optimal exposure targets that are associated with reduced toxicity and enhanced efficacy (PK/PD research) and to adjust the dose accordingly. Further research is required to test whether the dose adjustments do actually lead to reduced toxicity and improved efficacy.
Principal Investigator:
Dr Christa Nath
Clinical Trial Centres
Clinical trials centres have been established at Randwick and Westmead to support activities required to set up and monitor early phase clinical trials which have arisen from local pre-clinical research at KCA medical research institutes.
Randwick: Professor David Ziegler
Westmead: Dr Geoff McCowage
Principal Investigator:
Associate Professor David Ziegler / Dr Geoff McCowage
Biobanking
KCA Biobanking initiatives have led to the two large existing biobanks at Sydney Children’s Hospital with Children’s Cancer Institute and Children’s Hospital Westmead with Kids Research merging into a single governance structure and the banks adopting a new common IT system. The banks have harmonised the terminology used to code samples and increased the proportion of new diagnoses for whom samples have been collected. This has increased the total number of samples available to researchers, improved their access and paved the way for the future collection of matching germline DNA and serum samples on all patients. Moreover, analyses of our own banking techniques and international best practice has led to guidelines of benefit other initiatives in NSW. Under the leadership of Prof Jennifer Byrne, and more recently Associate Professor Dan Catchpoole, these developments are now applied to a national child health biobanking.
Childhood Cancer Survivor Bank
In Australia today almost 20,000 young adults are survivors of child cancer and one in three are expected to suffer a severe health problem as a consequence of their anticancer therapy. KCA is seeking to increase research opportunities for future NSW researchers analysing candidate clinical, therapeutic and germline genetic factors for a causal role in the late-effects of successful anticancer therapy. KCA is funding the harmonising of information into a single database with minimal clinical information such as the anticancer treatment received and tissue diagnosis, combined with banked germline DNA (gDNA) from peripheral blood leucocytes, for patients treated at either Sydney Children’s Hospital Randwick or Children’s Hospital Westmead.
The database and gDNA bank is managed by the existing collaborative Tumour Banks at Children’s Hospital Westmead/Kids Research and Sydney Children’s Hospital/Children’s Cancer Institute. This management includes maintaining the database and tissue bank, and assessing, then complying with any requests for access to the gDNA samples and/or clinical information, in accordance with institutional ethical guidelines. The first step is creation of a minimal clinical dataset and archiving of past patient clinical data and gDNA samples, followed by the creation of a prospective collection process, and a system of regular auditing which ensures the integrity of the data and samples, and assesses the ongoing usefulness of the data and samples.
Professor Richard Cohn
Principal Investigator:
Associate Professor Dan Catchpoole
Bioinformatics and Biostatistics
Bioinformaticians and biostatisticians are essential to the translational research capacity of the Kids Cancer Alliance. Many cancer research projects generate enormous volumes of data. This requires expert bioinformatics analysis and interpretation to extract meaningful discoveries from the large datasets and prepare the results for publication in the highest quality journals. Apart from providing valuable input into research programs directly, KCA bioinformaticians have been engaging biological research staff in training and mentoring in order to help them build data analysis skills.
Principal Investigator:
Ms Chelsea Mayoh
