Researchers at Karolinska Institutet and the Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital in Sweden have determined how children’s immune systems react to different kinds of cancer depending on their age. The study, which is published in the journal Cell, reveals significant differences between the immune response of children and adults, and has the potential to lead to new tailored treatments for children with cancer.
The activation of the immune system is crucial to our ability to fight cancer, but differs between children and adults. If we’re to properly treat childhood cancer, we need to find out how the child’s immune system is activated and regulated in children with cancer and what factors affect their immune responses.”
Petter Brodin, professor of pediatric immunology at the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, Karolinska Institutet, and pediatrician at the Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital, Karolinska University Hospital
New dimension of precision medicine
The study comprised 191 children between the ages of 0 to 18 who were diagnosed with different types of solid tumors at the Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital between 2018 and 2024. The researchers analysed tumor tissue and blood samples to determine the genetic mutations in the tumors and ascertain which genes are and are not active in the immune system.
“Precision medicine in cancer has mostly focused on the tumor properties,” explains Professor Brodin. “By characterising the immune system, we’re introducing an entirely new dimension that will be instrumental in shaping the future of childhood cancer therapy.”
Difference between children and