5K to Fight Histio 2021 - Grants Awarded

We are pleased to announce that proceeds from our 2021 event will go to help fund the following research initiatives:
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​HLHRUXO: Use of a Response-Adapted Ruxolitinib-containing Regimen for the Treatment of Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis run by Dr. Kim Nichols lab at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.  This trial is based on our basic laboratory research and aims to test the efficacy of a new type of drug called a JAK inhibitor for children with HLH. JAK inhibitors suppress the pro-inflammatory effects of cytokines, and in so doing, they decrease the manifestations of HLH. Although we have some support from industry, we need more funding in order to complete the trial and carry out studies to better understand whether and how the JAK inhibitor mediates its effects in patients with HLH.  For more details about this trial, please click here:  HLHRUXO Trial

Personalized histiocytosis care with HistioTrak: (run by Dr. Ashish Kumar’s Lab at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.)  We now know that all histiocytoses are driven by acquired mutations in one of the members of the MAP kinase pathway - most commonly BRAF and MAP2K1.  After development and validation of HistioTrak, a novel molecular testing method to detect rare histiocytic cells in the patient's blood, we will follow the mutation levels in blood while the patient is undergoing treatment. 

If the patient enters molecular remission (i.e. no detectable cells with mutation) using ultrasensitive molecular techniques, it may be safe to stop therapy without risk of relapse.  In order to clinically validate this hypothesis, funds are needed to generate the prospective data on a large patient cohort. This will help develop a personalized clinical treatment algorithm for guiding physicians for their specific patient, with their specific molecular alteration about stopping target therapy without the risk of disease relapse/recurrence.
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