The Pediatric Cancer Program at the New York University Medical Center began participating in Childrens Cancer Group (CCG) activities in 1982. The Aaron R. Rausen, M.D. and his colleagues are committed to improving the likelihood of survival and quality of care for children with cancer and to gain a better understanding of the processes surrounding the etiology and pathogenesis of childhood cancer. The objectives of the CCG include: 1) the development of clinical therapeutic trials against cancer in children capable of improving the survival and cure rates using prospective randomized controlled studies as well as historical controls. Standard chemotherapeutic agents are used by protocols singly and in combination, in conjunction with surgery and radiation therapy; 2) testing of investigational new drugs for therapeutic efficacy and appropriate pediatric cancer patients under controlled circumstances; and 3) evaluating newer diagnostic techniques on a multi-institutional basis so as to better understand etiology and pathofenesis of childhood cancers.

Over the last decade at NYU a multidisciplinary team has been developed that spans the breadth of needs for the child with cancer. This team includes a growing behavioral science component that is parallel with medical care aims to lessen the emotional impact of cancer on the child and his family.

Representative