FDA Approves First-Ever Drug for a Rare and Aggressive Brain Cancer

Department of Pediatrics originally published in 2023 has lead the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to accelerate approval of the drug ONC201 now called dordaviprone for the treatment of diffuse midline glioma (DMG) with an H3 K27M mutation. A rare, aggressive brain tumor that primarily affects children and young adults. This marks the first FDA-approved therapy for this form of cancer.

The Path to Discovery

Jennifer Brazil, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pathology at Michigan Medicine began her own research laboratory in 2018. She continued to research the mechanisms by which polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) and epithelial glycans can be targeted to alter neutrophil transepithelial migration and neutrophil function under conditions of intestinal inflammation and repair.

Researchers find common immune system mechanism between pregnancy, cancer

To understand why some cancers successfully circumvent the immune system to grow unchecked, researchers turned to pregnancy. “In pregnancy, the immune system does not reject the growing fetus, so we know there must be mechanisms active in the placenta. In cancer, it’s the same thing: the growing tumor is not rejected by the immune system. It means the cancer cells have developed strategies to suppress immune rejection, same as in pregnancy,” said Weiping Zou, M.D., Ph.D., professor of experimental pathology.

Engineering Hope

There are times in many people’s lives that can be called defining moments. Moments when their lives suddenly take a turn, and the entire trajectory of their lives change. This was true for Matthew Iyer, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Surgery and Pathology.

AP-funded Grant Leads to Human Pathology Cover Story

The Division of Anatomic Pathology in the Michigan Medicine Department of Pathology offers grant funding for faculty and trainees to pursue research interests related to anatomic pathology that may not otherwise be funded. One of these internal AP grant-funded projects, led by first-author Eman Abdulfatah, MD and senior-author Rohit Mehra, MD, resulted in a recent cover story in Human Pathology entitled “Extragonadal germ cell tumors: A clinicopathologic study with emphasis on molecular features, clinical outcomes and associated secondary malignancies.”

Large Study Identifies Biomarkers for Rare Kidney Tumors

With 20 subtypes of Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC) listed by the World Health Organization in 2022, determining the specific type of RCC and the correct treatment protocol for patients can be daunting. Only seven of the 20 subtypes had been defined by specific molecular changes and the 20% of RCCs that are classified as non-clear cell RCCs (non-ccRCC), were primarily identified only by histopathologic features.