Groundbreaking Cancer Treatment Collaboration Between Nicklaus Children's Hospital, FIU Saves Lives

Published on: 04/11/2024

8-year-old Logan Gets a Second Chance

When eight-year-old Logan learned his cancer had returned it was not the news he or his family had hoped to hear. Just two years earlier during the COVID-19 Pandemic, Logan was told he was cancer-free, but that celebration turned to heartache when he learned he had to face that battle for a second time.

Dr. Maggie Fader, pediatric hematologist/oncologist, KIDZ Medical at the Helen & Jacob Shaham Cancer & Blood Disorders Institute at Nicklaus Children's Hospital, in collaboration with a team of researchers led by Diana Azzam, assistant professor of environmental health sciences at the FIU Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work at Florida International University (FIU), has developed a functional precision medicine approach that targets cancer by combining genetic testing with a new way to test individual drugs on tumor samples.

This approach was used successfully to guide treatment of relapsed hard-to-treat pediatric cancer patients for the first time. This new approach resulted in 83% of the children showing improvement, including Logan, 8, whose relapsed acute myeloid leukemia was successfully treated through this new guided approach by Dr. Fader.

Thanks to this clinical trial collaboration between the Helen & Jacob Shaham Cancer & Blood Disorders Institute at Nicklaus Children's Hospital and Florida International University (FIU), Logan was given a new lease on life.

"Logan is a brave boy," said Dr. Marcos Mestre, chief medical officer at Nicklaus Children's Hospital. "Thanks to his bravery, his clinical care team at Nicklaus Children's including his attending physician Dr. Maggie Fader, FIU's Diana Azzam and her research team, we are advancing pediatric cancer treatment for all kids in Florida and across the region."

After his second round of treatment and participation in the clinical trial, Logan was finally able to ring the bell at Nicklaus Children's Hospital, a moment all pediatric cancer patients look forward to celebrating.

"At the Helen & Jacob Shaham Cancer & Blood Disorders Institute at Nicklaus Children's Hospital, we believe no child should have to leave home to get the care they need," Mestre added. "That is why we won't stop collaborating with organizations like FIU that share our commitment to making pediatric cancer treatment a priority for children and their families all across the state of Florida."

FIU and Nicklaus Children's shared key findings and details about the groundbreaking treatment earlier today at a press conference at FIU. http://go.fiu.edu/pct

The study was sponsored by Live Like Bella and results of the clinical study were published today in Nature Medicine.

About FIU

Florida International University is a top public university that drives real talent and innovation in Miami and globally. Very high research (R1) activity and high social mobility come together at FIU to uplift and accelerate student success in a global city by focusing in the areas of environment, health and innovation. Today, FIU has two campuses and multiple centers. FIU serves a diverse student body of more than 56,000 and 300,000 Panther alumni. FIU is ranked No. 4 Best Public University by the Wall Street Journal and U.S. News and World Report places dozens of FIU programs among the best in the nation, including international business at No. 2. Washington Monthly Magazine ranks FIU among the top 20 public universities contributing to the public good and Degree Choices places it among the top 10 in the nation for return on investment.

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