Barcelona hospital leads European project to test a new, more effective drug for children with cancer

The Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), based in Barcelona, will coordinate a European project to test a new, more effective and less toxic drug for children with cancer.

The PHOENIX project is funded with €8.5 million by Mission Cancer, within the framework of the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation program.

The first phase clinical trial will be conducted with the experimental drug ibrilatazar (ABTL0812).

The study will evaluate the potential in children and adolescents with relapsed or unresponsive neuroblastoma and other aggressive solid tumors, for which there are currently few or no therapeutic options.

The researchers will study the safety and antitumor activity of the drug and expect that children from hospitals across Europe will be able to access it, as part of this project.

"It is the first step to see if the good results we have obtained in recent years with in vitro and in vivo (in animal) models can now be used for pediatric patients," Dr. Miquel Segura, co-head of the VHIR Children's Cancer and Hematological Diseases group, and project leader, told the Catalan News Agency (ACN).

Some 50 patients between six months and 18 years of age will participate.

The study will evaluate the drug in combination with chemotherapy or immunotherapy, since previous studies have shown that it can enhance the action of these treatments without adding toxicity.

This drug works differently from traditional chemotherapy. Instead of damaging DNA, it induces the selective death of tumor cells by activating natural cell defense mechanisms, preserving healthy cells and thus reducing side effects.