Author: OOfYJn1wT8oKQm9eB3

Read here the detailed interview published in the magazine “Wissen wird” of the University Hospital Frankfurt, issue 2/2020, in December 2020.

Childhood cancer hits everyone involved like a “bolt from the blue”. From one moment to the next, the view of the world changes, the focus of life shifts. The affected child, the parents, even the entire environment usually fall into a “deep hole”. Despair and struggling with fate in the face of the imminent “loss of one’s own child” now determine the everyday life of everyone involved. Many of us are now experiencing a similar situation due to the worldwide spread of the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), in which isolation from family, friends and school lessons becomes the norm. Especially in these times, it is important to give children with cancer and their families a future by promoting “translational research” with a short path from the laboratory to practical application in patients.

Thanks to the research done so far, about 80% of children with cancer can be cured today! This is an outstanding result compared to “cancer in adults”. Nevertheless – even today every fifth child suffering from cancer still dies. We do not want to and will not be satisfied with this. As the “Frankfurt Foundation for Children with Cancer”, we aim to give every child with cancer a chance of a cure by funding research. We face this challenge even in these difficult economic times for foundations. We sincerely thank all those who have supported us in the past and look forward to your cooperation and donations as well as your interest in the realisation of our goals also in the future.

Stay well with us and, above all, stay healthy. On behalf of the Board of Trustees

Dr. Jürgen Vogt

The question of whether a sick cell dies, divides, or travels through the body is regulated by signal molecules that bind and activate receptors on the cell membrane. Among the most important molecular cues in the immune system is Tumor Necrosis Factor α (TNFα) that binds to TNFα receptor 1 (TNFR1). Now, Dr. Sjoerd van Wijk from the Institute for Experimental Cancer Research in Pediatrics/Frankfurt Stiftung für krebskranke Kinder, together with Mike Heilemann (Institute for Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, Goethe University), Ivan Dikic (Institute for Biochemistry II, Goethe University), Simone Fulda (Institute for Experimental Cancer Research in Pediatrics, Goethe University), Harald Wajant (University Hospital Würzburg) and Darius Widera (University Reading/UK), visualized for the first time the molecular organization of individual TNFR1 molecules using quantitative single-molecule super-resolution microscopy. As reported by the researchers in the current issue of the internationally renowned peer-reviewed journal “Science Signaling”, membrane TNFR1 exist as monomers and dimers in the absence of TNFα, however, TNFα binding creates TNFR1 trimers and oligomers. These findings provide novel insights in intrinsic TNFR1 clustering in the absence of TNFα, highlighting the relevance of coordinated TNFR1 clustering for cancer development and chronic inflammatory diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis. “It clearly opens new avenues for developing novel therapeutic approaches,” states van Wijk.

Link to article:

https://stke.sciencemag.org/content/13/614/eaax5647?utm_campaign=toc_signaling_2020-01-14&et_rid=17777426&et_cid=3163658

Further information: Dr Sjoerd van Wijk, Institute for Experimental Cancer Research in Pediatrics, Tel.: +49 69 67866574, Email: s.wijk@kinderkrebsstiftung-frankfurt.de

In September 1994, the Frankfurt Foundation for Children with Cancer was established with the aim of developing new therapy concepts and treatment options for children with cancer. In November 2019, under the patronage of Hesse’s Prime Minister Volker Bouffier, it celebrated its 25th anniversary with a grand ceremony at Frankfurt University Hospital.We take a look back at a great evening:

The mood in the foyer of lecture theatre 23-04 at Frankfurt University Hospital was cheerful on the afternoon of 9 November 2020. Numerous invited guests had gathered to duly celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Frankfurt Foundation for Children with Cancer.

After the welcome by the Chairman of the Foundation’s Board of Directors, Dr Jürgen Vogt, the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Goethe University Frankfurt, Prof. Dr Josef Pfeilschifter, and the Director of the Clinic for Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine at Frankfurt University Hospital, Prof. Dr Thomas Klingebiel, emphasised the successes and important significance of the research work in the Foundation’s research house, the Dr Petra Joh-Haus, for the treatment of childhood cancers.

The guests then followed with great interest the reports from the two research groups that are working in cooperation with the Clinic for Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine in the rooms of the Research House to fathom the causes of cancer in children and to discover new healing possibilities: The Interdisciplinary Laboratory for Paediatric Tumour and Virus Research headed by Prof. Jindrich Cinatl, and the Institute for Experimental Tumour Research in Paediatrics headed by Prof. Simone Fulda.

The highlight of the evening was the awarding of the Maresch Klingelhöffer Prize. The young scientist Dr. Constanze Schneider received this award with a beaming smile from Dr. Jürgen Vogt. In his laudation, Prof. Dr. Hubert Serve, Director of the Medical Clinic II at the University Hospital, emphasised the groundbreaking importance of the discovery of the biomarker SAMHD1.

At the end of the ceremony, Prof. Dr. Ulrike Köhl, Director of the Institute for Clinical Immunology at Leipzig University Hospital, paid tribute in her speech to the tireless efforts of the Foundation’s Board and staff to provide the best possible medical care for children and young people with cancer.

The musical accompaniment was provided by Peter Back on saxophone and Dr Jürgen Schwab on guitar, whose inspiring music perfectly rounded off the special occasion.

After the ceremony, a rich buffet awaited the guests, which provided an opportunity for a lively exchange.

We remember this special day with joy and pride and will do our utmost to be able to speak of 100 percent chances of cure for children with cancer at the 50th anniversary.