osTEAo: Spooky Sarcoma Stories

This presentation discusses the rationale behind and the specifics of the St. Jude-initiated trial 3CAR4OS, which seeks to make CAR T cell therapy a part of frontline treatment for patients diagnosed with metastatic osteosarcoma. Patients will be treated at the end of MAP, when their primary tumor has already been removed, and will then have their pulmonary metastases resected, giving us an unprecedented opportunity to treat OS at a time of minimal residual disease and enhance our knowledge of mechanisms of immunotherapy efficacy in upfront metastatic osteosarcoma.

Turning a promising research idea into a treatment for children with osteosarcoma requires early investment, collaboration among researchers and funders, and years of work to move breakthroughs from the lab to the clinic.In this episode, Dr. Ryan Roberts of Nationwide Children's Hospital, along with representatives from CancerFree KIDS and MIB Agents, will walk through the lifecycle of pediatric cancer research, from seed funding and early discoveries to clinical trials and ultimately new therapies. They will share examples of how new ideas develop from seed funding to bigger projects, or how some new ideas fail - and how failures are OK as they contribute to learning and better understanding osteosarcoma.

This presentation will give a high-level overview of the role genetic counselors play in a healthcare team. We will review general information about cancer genetics, including some of the different ways genetic testing is used in the oncology setting.Amy Daly is a board-certified genetic counselor with 20 years of experience providing individuals, families, and their healthcare providers support in hereditary risk assessment and genetic testing.Amy received her bachelor’s degree in biological and chemical sciences from Wells College in Aurora, NY in 2002. She completed her Master's degree in Genetic Counseling from Northwestern University in 2007. She went on to work in clinical positions focusing on cardiovascular genetics at Johns Hopkins Hospital and pediatric genetics Children’s Hospitals of Minnesota. She has also supported healthcare providers in the genetic testing process from laboratory-based roles at GeneDx and Invitae.Amy is currently a genetic counselor in the Oncology Department at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital. She specializes in helping individuals understand their risk of hereditary cancer, options for genetic testing, and how testing results could impact their personal health care, as well as the health care of family members.

In this special Halloween episode of osTEAo, Sammy, Inaaya, Elise, Camille, and Sabina share some of the scariest and most unexpected moments of their osteosarcoma journeys. From unexpected side effects to frightening experiences during treatment, OsteoWarriors reflect on the challenges that can catch you off guard and the moments that stay with you long after treatment ends. Tune in for an honest conversation about the realities of cancer, why sharing these experiences matters, and how to connect with others who understand.

Dr. Michelle Choe will introduce a phase 1 clinical trial currently open at Fred Hutch Cancer Center for folate receptor alpha (FOLR1)-CAR T cells for pediatric and adult patients with relapsed/refractory osteosarcoma after front-line therapy. This clinical trial is currently actively accruing and treating patients. The primary objective of the study is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of FOLR1-CAR T cells and to identify the recommended phase 2 dose. The secondary objective includes evaluating the antitumor activity of FOLR1-CAR T cells in patients.

There is an urgent need for safe and effective therapies to improve outcomes for patients with relapsed osteosarcoma. Viscum album extract (Iscador P, Iscador AG, Arlesheim, Switzerland) is a mistletoe extract manufactured from the leaves, stems and berries of Viscum album L., grown on pine trees (P = Pini). It has shown efficacy and safety in lab experiments and small clinical trials for patients with relapsed osteosarcoma. Data from a small pilot study in Italy paved the way for developing a larger clinical trial in the United States to test the use of Viscum album extract for children, teenagers, and young adults with osteosarcoma that has come back and can be removed with surgery. Another goal of this study is to learn more about what impact Viscum Album extract may have on patients' quality of life, tumor biology and immune system during treatment.

This month on osTEAo, Sammy, Inaaya, Mackenzie, and Keely discuss Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, how childhood cancer is portrayed and understood, and what those portrayals can miss about the realities of a cancer diagnosis. They share personal experiences and perspectives on awareness, treatment, advocacy, and the different ways patients, siblings, and families experience childhood cancer. They also reflect on the importance of supporting families who are grieving while continuing to raise awareness and create a better understanding of childhood cancer. Tune in for an honest conversation about childhood cancer awareness from the perspective of survivors and siblings.

Osteosarcoma Webinar Series: W. Thomas Cash, MD, MSc Children's Healthcare of Atlanta will discuss his work the TIGER study, which is a phase 1 study testing the TBL1 inhibitor tegavivint in combination with gemcitabine for pediatric and AYA patients with relapsed or refractory osteosarcoma.The topic of this presentation is the TIGER study, which is a phase 1 study testing the TBL1 inhibitor tegavivint in combination with gemcitabine for pediatric and AYA patients with relapsed or refractory osteosarcoma. This presentation will describe the background, objectives, eligibility, and treatment plan for the TIGER study, and will provide an update on trial progress to date.

Osteosarcoma Webinar Series: Subhashini Jagu, PhD, from the National Cancer Institute, joins us on OsteoBites to discuss the Childhood Cancer Data Initiative.This presentation highlights how the Childhood Cancer Data Initiative (CCDI) Data Ecosystem is transforming pediatric cancer research by making diverse biomedical data more accessible, interoperable, and reusable. Attendees will learn how the CCDI Data Ecosystem connects distributed data resources, supports data discovery and sharing, and enables advanced analytics and AI-driven research. The session will also showcase how a coordinated data ecosystem accelerates scientific collaboration and helps translate data into meaningful discoveries that advance cancer research.Dr. Subhashini Jagu is a Branch Chief in the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Office of Data Sharing. She leads the Childhood Cancer Data Initiative (CCDI) Data Ecosystem, advancing interoperable biomedical data ecosystems, clinical data workflows, and federated data architectures that enable data sharing and AI-driven cancer research. With more than 25 years of experience in biomedical research, Dr. Jagu has led numerous cross-agency collaborations to improve data accessibility, interoperability, and reuse. She has authored nearly 40 peer-reviewed publications and holds a patent, with a career dedicated to accelerating biomedical discovery through innovative data infrastructure.

The Greenfield Lab’s long-standing research interests focus on basic and translational aspects of bone biology, and on osteosarcoma metastasis. The osteosarcoma project aims to repurpose FDA-approved drugs to block growth of lung metastases, which is the primary cause of lethality in osteosarcoma patients. Current studies utilize 3D sarcosphere cultures and mouse models.Dr. Greenfield earned his undergraduate degree in biology from New College of Florida and master’s and doctoral degrees in marine biology and biomineralization, respectively, from the University of the North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He completed post-doctoral studies in bone cell biology at Washington University in St. Louis before joining the faculty at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland in 1990, where he remained before moving to Indianapolis in 2019 to join the IUSM Department of Orthopaedic Surgey, the Indiana Center for Musculoskeletal Health, and the Indiana University Simon Cancer Center.