New Test Diagnoses High-Risk Childhood Brain Tumors

Image: The new test offers the possibility of more personalized treatment options for medulloblastoma (Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock)

Medulloblastoma, which originates in the cerebellum, the rear part of the brain, is the most prevalent malignant brain tumor in children and is notoriously difficult to diagnose. Currently, identifying the most aggressive forms of this disease relies on advanced, costly tests available only in a few specialized labs worldwide. Due to the limitations of current diagnostic methods, all children diagnosed with medulloblastoma are treated the same, meaning those with less aggressive forms of the tumor undergo potentially unnecessary and toxic brain radiation and chemotherapy. This approach often results in lasting learning, physical, and emotional disabilities. Conversely, children with the most aggressive forms of the disease may not receive sufficient treatment to cure it. A new test has now been developed that can differentiate between high-risk cases of medulloblastoma, which require radiation therapy, and lower-risk cases that do not, offering the possibility of more personalized treatment options for children affected by this condition.

The new test, developed through a collaboration that included researchers from the University of British Columbia (Vancouver, BC, Canada), employs an antibody-based technique called immunohistochemistry, which is widely available in clinical labs around the world. To create the test, the researchers analyzed a range of data sets, including proteomics (which assesses overall protein expression in tumor tissues) and transcriptomics (which evaluates gene expression in tumor tissues). By using this approach, the team identified a protein named TPD52 that is highly expressed in the most aggressive forms of medulloblastoma. They then screened about 400 medulloblastoma samples for the presence of this protein. The results, published in Clinical Cancer Research, showed that tumors with detectable levels of TPD52 were significantly more likely to behave aggressively and relapse.

“By using a technique that is available in virtually all clinical labs, our new test has the potential to improve the diagnosis and future treatment of medulloblastoma for children in almost every corner of the planet,” said the study’s lead author Dr. Alberto Delaidelli, MD.