10171969Redirecting Immune Memory with Viral Gene Therapy for Childhood CancerClosedFast Start ResponseInnovate UKThe fight against childhood cancer, a disease claiming more young lives in Europe and the USA than any other, has long been held back by both biological and commercial barriers. Despite their collectively devastating toll on children and their families, the rarity of individual types of child cancer means that it is difficult to create new drugs just for kids. Children are treated with therapies designed for adults, causing lifelong harm to growing bodies. But childhood cancers are not simply smaller versions of adult disease. They begin from errors in early development, and their distinct biology presents different challenges. They often lack mutated targets the immune system needs to identify the disease, while children's developing immune cells struggle to mount a response. These challenges have left pediatric oncology as a critical unmet need. A powerful solution able to treat many different types of child cancer is needed, one which is designed with the needs of children in mind. This project develops Kindling Bio's unique solution. We are building a cancer gene therapy platform, capable of rewiring cancer cells from within to display artificial 'Immune Flags' which alert and attract children's immune responses to eliminate the cancer. The work will create the first version of our cancer gene therapy platform, a virus able to deliver our Immune Flags into cancer cells. It will test the ability of this virus to attack only cancer cells, and provide evidence of the power of the therapeutic payload. Together, this is a critical first step towards putting children affected by cancer first in drug development.