"The relapse usually happens in the first two years after diagnosis, Winters says, and is much harder to treat than the original occurrence. The current method of predicting relapse involves a bone marrow sample that is tested for specific proteins that indicate the presence of cancer, but Winters is interested in a genetic test that is more accurate and can be conducted via a simple blood draw." Read more: https://news.cuanschutz.edu/cancer-center/predict-relapse-pediatric-a

Researchers at Oncode Institute and Princess Máxima Center have developed a new human model of the brainstem that is changing how one of the most aggressive childhood brain cancers can be studied. Read more: https://www.zonmw.nl/en/news/new-human-brain-model-deadly-childhood-brain-cancer

"The guidelines are clear: Survivorship care is important. But in many cases, care does not occur, and our study combines evidence from many sources to explain why" Read more: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-01-major-highlights-barriers-childhood-cancer.html

In a new study, Children’s Cancer Institute and UNSW Sydney researchers lab-tested a combined therapy approach on a group of difficult-to-treat brain tumours: diffuse midline gliomas (DMG). This group includes diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), a rare but fatal childhood brain cancer. Read more: https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2026/01/dual-therapy-shows-promise-for-childhood-brain-cancer

Researchers at the University of Louisville used a modern statistical method to reanalyze the results of children with a special type of high-risk medulloblastoma called Group 3, who participated in two major national clinical trials of therapies. Read more: https://www.uoflnews.com/section/science-and-tech/unique-statistical-approach-lends-promise-to-therapies-for-rare-childhood-brain-cancer/

Researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) have developed a potentially new treatment strategy aimed at immunologically “cold” tumors by restoring their ability to present antigens to the immune system. Read more: https://www.insideprecisionmedicine.com/topics/oncology/new-approach-to-treating-cold-neuroblastoma-developed/

A new study indicates that adolescent and young adult cancer survivors age faster at the cellular level. Read more: https://www.technologynetworks.com/tn/news/adolescent-cancer-survivors-age-faster-than-their-peers-408433

CAR T cell therapies targeting B7-H3 (CD276), a marker expressed on DIPG tumors, have been tested in early phase clinical trials and demonstrated feasibility and tolerability. [...] However, many CAR T cells may struggle to travel into the tumor and exert their cancer-killing effects. Read more: https://www.fredhutch.org/en/news/spotlight/2026/01/ccsg-song-natcomm.html

Long term survivors of childhood cancer may carry a measurable brain age gap decades after treatment, according to a cross-sectional analysis from the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort Study. Read more: https://www.emjreviews.com/neurology/news/accelerated-brain-aging-tied-to-neurocognition/

Using machine learning and a large volume of data on genes and existing drugs, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have identified a combination of statins and phenothiazines that is particularly promising in the treatment of the aggressive form of neuroblastoma. Read more: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-12-machine-statin-phenothiazine-combo-neuroblastoma.html