Hope over brain tumour treatment

Neurofibromatosis mainly affects older children and adults

A group of scientists believe they are close to finding new treatments for multiple brain tumours.

Patients with neurofibromatosis can develop up to 30 brain tumours, which although benign, can lead to deafness and eventually death.

At the moment the only treatment involves invasive surgery.

But a team from the South West Peninsula Medical School say they have had some success with new therapies through research of human cells.

The condition, which affects one in every 2,500 people worldwide, is more common in older children and adults.

We welcome this breakthrough Maria Toman, Neurofibromatosis Association

By using human cells in vitro, Professor Oliver Hanemann said he and his team had been able to re-profile existing cancer drugs without the need for large toxicity studies. This has allowed them to move straight to clinical trials.

"We are on the verge of working with inpatient clinics to trial our latest breakthrough, and we are investigating other therapeutic targets using other drugs," Prof Hanemann said.

"Using human in vitro cell culture, which is the unique aspect of our work, allows us to move seamlessly and relatively quickly from lab-based biochemistry to drug therapies, clinical trials and hopefully successful outcomes."

One of the patients taking part in the clinical trials is a 21-year-old man from Cornwall.

'Exciting' work

Tom Wakenshaw from Gunnislake in Cornwall was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis after suffering from headaches at the age of 15.

He has had several operations to remove tumours, which have resulted in numb fingertips and feet.

He said: "I had a job as a window cleaner once, but a had an accident where a nail slipped between my toes.

"The worrying thing was that, even though it did not go into me, I couldn't feel it passing by my toes."

Mr Wakenshaw said the clinics had provided a good opportunity to talk about his condition.

The Children's Tumour Foundation said the Peninsula team's work was "exciting" as there was currently no effective treatment for the condition.

The Neurofibromatosis Association said it was watching the progress of the trials with interest.

Spokeswoman Maria Toman said: "As the only charity working in the UK with patients and families affected by neurofibromatosis, we welcome this breakthrough."