Our Impact
Childhood brain cancer known as ATRT is considered incurable. Most children die within 6 months to a year after diagnosis.
Tali’s Fund is established.
Tali’s Fund and the Mitchell Benjamin Duckman Fund collaborate to initiate an ATRT research project at SickKids Hospital in Toronto, Canada (under the direction of Dr. Annie Huang), with data and tumour tissue available from 14 patients. This mobilizes the largest global collaborative study of ATRTs involving 35 countries.
Tali’s Fund sponsors the Rhabdoid Tumour Session at the 15th International Symposium on Paediatric Neuro-Oncology (ISPNO). Almost 1,000 participants from 59 different countries attend the symposium in Toronto.
Transformative publication shows that ATRT is not one disease, allowing for more targeted treatment. “This important study marks the first step towards an integrated, risk-adapted, therapeutic approach…avoiding radiation in younger, average-risk patients and integrating novel therapies early for very high-risk patients.” Publication in Lancet Oncology.
Canadian collaborative study indicates promising initial findings that some patients with ATRT are surviving without upfront radiation. Publication in Neuro-Oncology.
Discovery of 3 subtypes of ATRTs, each responsive to different types of drugs. We now know that ATRT is not just one disease; it is comprised of at least 3 related but distinct genetic diseases, with patients that will be expected to respond differently to different drugs and treatment combinations. Publication in Cancer Cell.
After almost a decade of collaborative research, an online global registry is launched, with the goal of accelerating and improving diagnosis and treatment strategies for rare paediatric brain tumours. The Rare Brain Tumour Consortium (RBTC) is led by SickKids Hospital under the direction of Dr. Annie Huang.
Our research team hosts a conference for physicians & researchers from 88 centres around the world to discuss development of medicine personalized for individual patients to improve survival of those with ATRT.
Dr. Annie Huang’s research is recognized to be highly significant and receives funding from the Stand Up to Cancer U.S. based grant program as part of a large international collaboration.
Tali’s Fund collaborates with Miracle Marnie and Phoebe Rose Rocks to support the design and creation of a new and improved website for the RBTC, as well as an animated video - both created by INVIVO. INVIVO wins GOLD for their video in the NYX Awards!
An international consensus document is developed for molecular classification of ATRTs to develop treatments for patient-specific ATRT subtypes. The introduction of a common classification facilitates future research, which will help to refine subgroup-based therapies for ATRT patients. Publication in Neuro-Oncology.
Dr. Huang’s data on ATRT subtypes is used by the Children’s Oncology Group (the largest paediatric cancer trial consortium) to design a global prospective ATRT clinical trial.
The RBTC tissue bank in Toronto is now the largest in the world, and the data collected is paving the way for researchers working to find a cure for rare childhood brain tumours.
- Over 2000 patients enrolled with the RBTC & over 3000 tumour samples banked from over 150 centres in 35 countries. This includes over 625 ATRT patients enrolled. This is the most extensive data gathered in this area worldwide.
- The result: revolutionary, quantitative advances in the knowledge about several types of infant embryonal brain tumours. Tumour and patient treatment data are being matched. Research is showing what works and what does not work for children with different types of ATRTs, ETMR and pineoblastoma.
- Studying these tumours can also provide valuable insights into more common types of childhood and adult brain cancers, and it can pave the way for more targeted and effective treatment options.
Two Charities Team Up to Improve Outcomes for Rare Childhood Brain Cancer
Tali’s Fund is proud to partner with Hope4ATRT to support a ground-breaking research initiative at Toronto’s SickKids Hospital. This initiative aims to increase survival rates while decreasing lifelong side effects for young children with ATRT. Our research team will use cutting-edge technology to detect tumour DNA in spinal fluid. They hope to identify biological markers in the DNA that can predict treatment response and determine which kids can be treated successfully without harmful radiation. This could also pave the way for more targeted treatment options for other types of childhood brain cancers.
In support of expanding the efficiency and comprehensiveness of the RBTC tissue bank, Dr. Huang is awarded the US Department of Defense Resource and Community Development Award (RCDA) Research Grant. This funding will enable conversion of the RBTC into an even more extensive collaborative web-based platform.
Dr. Annie Huang is awarded the 2023 Inaugural DECRYPT Research Grant for Rare Pediatric Brain Tumours!
Tali’s Fund partnered with six other Canadian charities to create the Defeating Embryonal Cancer in Young People Together (DECRYPT) Research Grant. This initiative could lead to a significant improvement in the understanding, diagnosis and treatment of childhood embryonal brain tumours.
At the “Worth the Fight ATRT Rally” hosted by Hope4ATRT on November 10, 2023, Dr. Annie Huang provides an informative explanation and update about the research project co-funded by Tali's Fund and Hope4ATRT and discusses ongoing research goals. Tali’s Fund is committed to continuing to help support these ground-breaking initiatives and to working collaboratively with other like-minded organizations.