The drug “Pazopanib” has achieved remarkable success in treating a small group of children with multiple metastatic Ewing’s sarcoma. 85% of patients who received the drug survived two years after being diagnosed with the disease, and no cancer progression was observed in two-thirds of them.
Ewing’s sarcoma is classified as the second most common primary malignant bone tumor. It mostly affects adolescents and can be fatal if it spreads.
The study was conducted by researchers from the Warsaw Mother and Child Institute in Poland, and its results were published in the journal Frontiers in Oncology on October 23, and the Eurick Alert website wrote about it.
Pazopanib was originally developed to treat renal cell carcinoma, but after some success in adult patients with Ewing’s sarcoma, the research team tried to incorporate it into treatment regimens for children with multiple metastatic Ewing’s sarcoma, in the hope that it would produce a better outcome by targeting different aspects of the cancer simultaneously.
Cut off supplies
Professor Anna Raciborska from the Warsaw Mother and Child Institute, co-author of the study, said: “Pazopanib is a pill that prevents the tumor from forming new blood vessels, which it needs to survive and spread.”
“By cutting off this blood supply, the tumor should weaken and become more sensitive to chemotherapy and radiation,” she added. “The drug may slow the progression of the disease and help current treatments work better.”
Eleven patients received pazopanib between 2016 and 2024 along with other treatments at the Warsaw Mother and Child Institute. The ages of the patients ranged between 5 and 17 years when they started taking pazopanib.
The success of this treatment was tracked through imaging, laboratory tests, and careful monitoring of any potential side effects.
The scans showed that most patients responded clearly to the medication and had minimal and treatable side effects.