TamCAM - Tampere Center for Child, Adolescent and Maternal Health Research

Background & Aims:

Leukemia is the most common form of cancer in childhood. Although the prognosis of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has improved during the past decades, around 10-15% of patients relapse and a few subtypes of ALL carry very poor prognosis. Early treatment response is the single most important prognostic factor. Chemotherapy causes short- and long-term adverse effects and new treatments with better efficacy and higher specificity towards leukemic cells are needed. The HemoRes group performs genome-wide analyses on patient samples, explores the molecular mechanisms of leukemogenesis by utilizing cell lines and zebrafish models, and develops new strategies for the treatment of patients, particularly those with slow therapy response and resistant subclones.

People:

The Pediatric Hematology and Oncology group consists of seven PhD or post-doc students and a technician. The group members have expertise in the fields of biomedical engineering, genomics, molecular and cellular biology, pediatrics, pathology and zebrafish animal modelling.

Research themes:

– Investigation of molecular mechanisms that initiate, evolve, and propagate acute lymphoblastic leukemias (ALL).
– Modelling of ALL subtypes in zebrafish.
– Development of novel therapies to reduce chemotherapy burden of leukemia patients.

Network:

The HemoRes group cooperates with researchers in Finland, Nordic countries, Europe, and US. The group leader co-chairs the Nordic NOPHO Leukemia & Lymphoma working group and is a Nordic representative in the scientific committee of the international ALLTogether leukemia study group.

Learn more about the Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Group.

Contact:

Group leader Olli Lohi, MD, PhD, Chief of Hematology & Oncology Division
Tampere University, Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology and Tampere University Hospital
olli.lohi@tuni.fi
+358 50 3186254
ARVO D540