Foundation News

• Gold Ribbon Golf Classic
On July 9, we are hosting our second annual Gold Ribbon Golf Classic at Angus Glen Golf Course in Markham , Ontario . Our foursomes are more than 2/3 sold out! For more information, click here.

• Spokeman Tour for Childhood Cancer
Tim Harriman is 18 and a cancer survivor. On June 3 he starts his cross-Canada bike ride in support of kids with cancer. He will visit most of the 17 children’s hospitals and treatment centres on his journey, giving the children and their families his support and inspiration. He will also be gathering cards, pictures and messages from the children and their families which he will present to the Prime Minister, requesting that the government designate September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

To see Tim’s interview on CBC Newsworld, click here.

To read more of his plans and check out his route, visit www.spokemantour.com

Please support Tim with a generous donation and a message of support for kids with cancer that he will carry to the PM! Make a Donation!

• Hope and the Dragon – a book for children with cancer
The author of Hope and the Dragon is Matthew Epp from Fiske , Saskatchewan .  He is 14 and has been battling cancer most of his life. He wrote the book to inspire other children to fight “the dragon” of cancer in their bodies with hope and inspiration.  To pre-order the book, autographed by Matthew, click here.

• Summer Support at the Foundation
We are delighted to have university student and Foundation spokesperson for childhood cancer survivors, Harriet Lye, working with us again this summer. Harriet will be working to raise funds for childhood cancer research through her Cut Off Cancer haircutting events click here for details, and other activities. She will also be working with Beverley Mackenzie, Challenge Events Coordinator from CLIC Sargent, the childhood cancer charity in England who is joining us for a week to share her ideas for special events to support kids with cancer.

• 2007 Foundation Scholarship Program
We are anticipating an even higher number of Scholarship applicants this year – due to improved marketing of the program, and a higher number of survivors each year - which we celebrate with great joy! Applications are accepted up to June 30th for scholarships that will be from $300 to $1,000 each, depending on the number of eligible applicants and funds available. This increased number of applications forces us to review the details of our Scholarship Program for this coming academic year. We welcome applications until June 30, click here for details.

News Roundup

• Discovery on why childhood cancer spreads may lead to new drugs

Most deaths from childhood cancer occur because tumour cells leave their original site and go through the bloodstream or other fluids to form secondary tumours elsewhere in the body. The secondary tumours may resist chemotherapy.

In this week's issue of the journal Cancer Research, Dr. Poul Sorensen, Hyung-Gyoo Kang and colleagues at the B.C. Cancer Agency say the key to the deadly cells lies in their ability to cluster. "The cells find each other, snap together and become bulletproof," Sorensen told CBC News.  It's as if the cancer cells are like pieces of Lego. When they float around in the blood by themselves, they aren't strong. But as soon as they see others, the cells band together, which is how they can become deadly, Sorensen said.

Cells usually need to be anchored in a solid mass to survive. In this case, the cancer cells were actually stronger when suspended in fluid and were able to grow stronger and more resistant.

The team studied cells from Ewing sarcoma, a bone and connective tissue cancer that mainly affects people between the ages of 10 and 20. Investigators grew the cells in a solution similar to blood, recreating the environment the cells are in as they migrate through the body.

A related type of cancer, osteosarcoma, claimed the life of Terry Fox after it spread to his lungs from his leg bone. Fox became a national hero in 1980 when he ran across the country to raise money for cancer research.

The key to stopping such tumours in their tracks is to hit the cells before they are able to become reactivated, Sorensen said.

The team is working with pharmaceutical companies on the next step of the research, targeting the proteins they have found are important for the process.

The clusters had a protein called E-cadherin that is normally not found in sarcomas, the researchers found. Having the protein allowed the cell clusters to activate another protein called ErbB4, which regulates the growth of tumour cells and makes them able to resist chemotherapy.

Although the research is preliminary and it will take many years to find and test alternatives to chemotherapy, the approach holds promise, said Dr. Mason Bond, a pediatric oncologist at B.C. Children's Hospital in Vancouver.

"If something like that were to turn out to be true, then it would be important in enabling more people to be cured with the type of treatment that we have available now," said Bond, who was not involved in the study.

The discovery also has implications beyond sarcomas, Sorensen said, since the E-cadherin protein is often found in tumours from adults with epithelial cancers and may play a role in breast cancer.

With files from the Canadian Press

Dr. Winn, a CIHR-funded researcher at Queen's University, is studying benzene, a contaminant that has been linked to the development of leukemia, a cancer of the blood. Canada tightly regulates the amount of benzene in the products we use, but researchers don't exactly know how much of this chemical is too much. We are exposed to small amounts of benzene every time we inhale cigarette smoke or gasoline fumes.

Dr. Winn and the researchers in her lab want to know how benzene causes leukemia, and whether or not benzene exposure before birth increases a child's risk of developing cancer.

Exposure to benzene sets off a chain of chemical reactions as the body attempts to break it down. Dr. Winn has been able to show that, as this happens, it has an impact on proteins used to create blood cells which, in turn, may result in leukemia.

"We're looking at whether benzene interferes with specific biochemical processes in the body that are believed to be important in the development of leukemia," says Dr. Winn. "We're focusing on a protein called c-Myb, which is involved in blood cell-formation."

During the breakdown of benzene, the body produces toxic molecules known as reactive oxygen species. Dr. Winn believes that these toxins increase the activity of c-Myb. When c-Myb becomes more active, blood cell division speeds up, potentially leading to leukemia. Dr. Winn has already found that pregnant mice produce high levels of c-Myb when exposed to benzene. Luckily, her team has also found a way of stopping the problems caused by benzene, using antioxidants to disarm the reactive oxygen species and block any harmful chemical reactions.

"This is the first time anyone's been able to show a direct link between benzene exposure and c-Myb, and that benzene's effects can be blocked by antioxidant treatment," says Dr. Winn.

Over the past six years, CIHR has increased its investment in environmental studies such as Dr. Winn's almost nine-fold. This research is still new, and there are many unanswered questions about the consequences of exposure to environmental contaminants. But it's not too early for people to start taking precautions.

"I think it's important for us all to be aware of our surroundings, and to recognize that there are some exposures that may be difficult to avoid completely," says Dr. Winn. "Understanding how chemicals cause toxic effects may lead to the development of safer chemicals and better strategies to treat or prevent the harmful effects of environmental contaminants."


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