Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Dr. Maris' laboratory is responsible for neuroblastoma testing within the PIVOT consortium. Children with disseminated neuroblastoma are at high risk of treatment failure and death despite chemotherapy, radiation therapy and immunotherapy. At the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, the goal of the Maris Laboratory is to improve neuroblastoma cure rates by developing patient-specific therapies targeting the unique oncogenic drivers of each case. Its work concentrates on the potential of biomarker-directed therapeutics by performing the pivotal preclinical studies that enhance the ability of childhood cancer researchers to design early phase clinical trials enriched for patients with high potential to benefit. The ultimate goal is to shift the paradigm for how high-risk neuroblastoma patients are treated with the goal of substantively improving the outcomes for cure rates and a decrease in the toxicity associated with current standards of care. ...Read more