The potential for epigenetic analysis of paediatric CNS tumours to improve diagnosis, treatment and prognosis

Abstract

Tumours of central nervous system (CNS) origin are the second most prevalent group of cancers in children, yet account for the majority of childhood cancer-related deaths. Such tumours show diverse location, cell type of origin, disease course and long-term outcome, both across and within tumour types, making treatment problematic and contributing to the relatively modest progress in reducing mortality over recent decades. As technological advances begin to reveal the genetic landscape of all cancers, it is becoming increasingly clear that genetic disruption represents only one 'layer' of molecular disruption associated with disease aetiology. Obtaining a full understanding of tumour behavio..