The role of adipose tissue in directly affecting disease outcome.

Obese ALL patients have an increased risk of relapse and poorer event-free survival (10), the impact of which is made more complex by the correlation of corticosteroid therapy with rapid weight gain in children with ALL (11). Whether obese children present with ALL, or become obese as a result of therapy, it is still unclear how obesity itself impacts on the initial success of therapy in ALL patients. With the increasing obesity epidemic, understanding the impact of obesity on disease outcomes is pertinent, as current chemotherapy regimens are adjusted according to body weight or surface area. However, such measures may be inaccurate predictors of the actual proportion of adipose tissue present, known as adiposity, and so may be inadequate proxy when determining dosing regimens for obese patients.

Grant Award – Kidscan Student Placement (2016 – 2017)

Funding Award – £2000.00

Funding Awarded to – Dr Caroline Topham

Research Location – University of Salford

Lead Researcher – Dr Caroline Topham