Masahiro Hitomi, MD, PhD

Surfacing Solutions: Creating a New Path for Pediatric Osteosarcoma Treatment

Immunotherapy has opened new doors in the fight against cancer but not for every child. Pediatric osteosarcoma, a rare and aggressive bone cancer that typically affects young people, remains resistant to today’s immunotherapies. The prognosis is especially grim when the cancer spreads or returns which is what led two Cleveland Clinic researchers to apply for a VeloSano Grant.

Masahiro Hitomi, MD, PhD, and Zachary Burke, MD, are investigating why a key protein that could help the immune system detect osteosarcoma cells remains hidden inside those cells. Their research focuses on finding ways to coax this protein to the cell surface, enabling immunotherapy to better recognize and attack the cancer. If successful, their work could bring progress to a course of treatment that has seen little advancement in nearly half a century.

“Although it’s a relatively rare disease, it’s one of the most common pediatric cancers,” says Dr. Burke, an orthopaedic oncologist and surgeon. “It’s a bit disheartening when you talk to patients and we haven’t made any meaningful headway in improving oncological outcomes in 50 years.”

By leveraging existing FDA-approved therapeutics for other diseases and cancers, Dr. Hitomi and Dr. Burke hope to improve patient outcomes by adapting and combining drugs in an innovative way. Their approach could accelerate the path to new therapeutic options for kids and young adults. This work is a passion that is personal to them.

“Some of my family has a cancer history, and so that’s been part of my motivation of getting into cancer research,” says Dr. Hitomi, who has ridden in Bike to Cure for years. “I first started with the shortest distance and trained myself to finish the 100. The event has such a good purpose, so that motivates you to participate. And the riding itself is just fun.”

Bike to Cure draws people together from all over for a common goal, including folks from the community, patients, researchers and clinicians. Like Dr. Hitomi and Dr. Burke, their mission is to accelerate the pace of cancer research and bring hope to those affected.

“For me, translational science is a way to move the needle on a bigger scale,” says Dr. Burke. “Improving outcomes for all patients really is done through research. It’s a way to attack the problem from a different angle at a more 30,000-foot view global scale to try to change the outcomes overall not just treat one patient.”