(Science Daily, Cancer Research UK) – Children with a rare type of cancer called Wilms’ tumor who are at low risk of relapsing can now be given less intensive treatment, avoiding a type of chemotherapy that can cause irreversible heart problems in later life.
The move follows the results of a Cancer Research UK trial, published in The Lancet, showing that the drug doxorubicin can be safely omitted from treatment without affecting patients’ chances of survival.
Wilms’ tumor is a type of kidney cancer that affects around 80 children a year in the UK, most under the age of seven. Until now, about one half of these patients would have received doxorubicin as part of their treatment, which carries a small but significant risk of heart problems in later life. Now only about one quarter of children – those at the greatest risk of relapse – need the drug.
Doxorubicin is helpful in treating many types of cancer. But with around nine in 10 children with Wilms tumor now cured, doctors wanted to find out whether it could be safely left out from the treatment of those who had a low chance of relapse, without affecting survival chances.