Funding outcome

Over the last few decades, chemotherapy has shown to be a very effective treatment for cancer patients, especially in the early stages of the disease. One of the drugs used, cisplatin, has led to a high incidence of permanent hearing loss in both ears as a side effect for more than half of the children treated. Nonetheless, cisplatin is a useful drug and so it is necessary to find a way to protect against hearing loss while administering this chemotherapeutic. These childhood cancer patients, who first undergo cancer treatment only to then suffer hearing loss, become disadvantaged in many ways. Learning and development - including speaking and language - becomes increasingly difficult. This impedes their interaction with peers and their inclusion in other aspects of society is greatly affected. Neglect of regular, day-to-day communication impacts healthy brain development and carries forward through adolescence into adulthood. Finally, the combination of hearing loss and lack of healthy development presents a disadvantage to them economically. As adults, it has been demonstrated that these survivors face more difficulty securing jobs and finding suitable careers. Thus, finding safe therapies for this cisplatin side effect is crucial to improving the quality of life of the children at risk. Research will be conducted based on previous studies on an infant mouse inner ear cell line, which presented an appropriate model for cytotoxic effects on children. The effect that cisplatin treatment has on these cells will be monitored through specific cell responses on a model cell line. This will allow for close examination of the cellular pathways involved and studies into potential protectants from the toxic effect of cisplatin on ear cells.