E-2CAR Phase I clinical trial to evaluate administration of EphA2 targeted CAR T-cells to children with sarcoma
Improving outcomes for children with sarcoma cancers
Luminesce Alliance is supporting a Phase I clinical trial to evaluate administration of EphA2 targeted CAR T-cells to children with sarcoma.
Led by Professor Geraldine O’Neill, Head of the Children’s Cancer Research Unit at Kids Research, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, the trial aims to address critical knowledge gaps in children’s sarcoma cancer treatment.
The trial contributes to the broader understanding of the feasibility and challenges of using CAR T-cell therapy to inform the next generation of clinical trials.
Why is this clinical trial being conducted?
Despite significant improvements in survival for many children with cancer, outcomes for those diagnosed with sarcomas, particularly Osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma, remain poor.
These cancers account for most paediatric sarcomas, with only one-third of patients with metastatic or treatment refractory forms surviving. There is a clear need for new strategies to improve outcomes for these children.
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The E2CAR clinical trial will assess CAR T-cell therapies in treating recurrent or metastatic osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma in children, where effective treatments are limited.
CAR T-cell therapy (Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell therapy) is a type of immunotherapy that uses a patient’s own genetically modified immune cells (T-cells) to fight certain cancers.
In this process, a patient’s T-cells are collected and genetically re-engineered in a lab to express chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) that can target and kill cancer cells. The CAR T-cells are infused back into the body, to find and destroy the sarcoma cancer cells.
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Lead Investigator
- Professor Geraldine O’Neill, Head Children’s Cancer Research Unit, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, The Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network
Investigator Team
- Professor Geraldine O’Neill, Head Children’s Cancer Research Unit, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, The Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network
- Associate Professor Geoff McCowage, Cancer Centre for Children, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead
- Professor Ian Alexander, Gene Therapy Unit, The Children’s Medical Research Institute and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead
- Dr Kavitha Gowrishankar, SOMS, The University of Sydney
- Dr Caroline Bateman, Cancer Centre for Children, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead
- Dr Smadar Kahana-Edwin, Children’s Cancer Research Unit, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead
- Professor Jonathan Karpelowsky, FMH, University of Sydney
- Dr Melissa Gabriel, Blood Transplant and Cell Therapy service at the Cancer Centre for Children, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead
- Dr Ali Moghimi, Histopathology, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead
- The Children’s Cancer Research Unit Consumer Advisory Group
E-2CAR Trial research team members L-R: Robyn Walsh, Geraldine O’Neill, Amanda Tan, Kavitha Gowrishankar, Geoffrey McCowage.
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- Children’s Medical Research Institute
- Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network (at Westmead)
- University of Sydney
