Prof Kathy Pritchard-Jones

Kathy Pritchard-Jones

Institute of Child Health
University College London
London

Investigating the genetics of children's cancer

Professor Kathy Pritchard-Jones is one of the UK's foremost experts in childhood cancer, and programme director for cancer at University College London (UCL). She and her team of dedicated scientists and clinicians are carrying out research at the Institute of Child Health - part of UCL. Their aim is to identify genetic faults that can lead to certain childhood cancers. This could help predict how well a child could respond to treatment, whether the cancer will return and how long a child will survive.

Professor Pritchard-Jones is particularly interested in a gene called WT1, which is often faulty in a type of kidney cancer called Wilms' tumour. She is carrying out a clinical trial in children and young people with this disease. The trial will show whether a drug commonly used in combination with other chemotherapy drugs is necessary for all patients. If not, the drug could be removed, reducing some of the harmful and unpleasant side-effects of the treatment.

She and her team identified that WT1 is involved in the development of another type of children's cancer, acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). Understanding WT1'S role in cancer could lead to improvements in the diagnosis and treatment of both Wilms' and AML in the future.

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