Helena Carén to receive the Assar Gabrielsson award for research that resulted in better diagnosis of childhood cancer

Helena Carén has studied genetic abberations in tumors and will receive the prize of SEK 50,000 for her thesis at the University of Gothenburg. Her analysis method is currently being used to find the right treatment for children in Sweden suffering from neuroblastoma, the aggressive cancer form found in children.

Neuroblastom appears in the nervous system and is one of the most common tumor diseases in children. Helena Carén has shown that there are abberations in certain genes in patients suffering from a more malignant type of the disease and with poor prognosis.

“In the future, the result may contribute to the development of more individually adapted treatment for children who are affected by the high-stage neuroblastoma,” says Professor Eva Forssell-Aronsson, Executive member of the Assar Gabrielsson Foundation fund.

In her work, Helena Carén combined fundamental research with studies of tumor tissues from patients. Already today, her technique is being used in practice. For all children suffering from the neuroblastoma disease in Sweden, biopsi material is sent to a laboratory in Gothenburg, where it is diagnosed according to the biological profiling developed by Helena Carén in her thesis.

Assar Gabrielsson was one of Volvo’s founders. In accordance with his wishes, a fund for clinical research in cancer diseases was established. The Assar Gabrielsson’s prize also includes the opportunity to receive a research grant of SEK 100,000. Over the years, AB Volvo has contributed to the fund’s capital and the fund is now able to contribute more than SEK 4 M annually in research grants to young cancer researchers.

May 8, 2012

Journalists who want additional information, please contact:
Professor Eva Forssell-Aronsson, Executive member of Assar Gabrielsson’s fund, tel: +46 (0)703-72 26 26.

Read more about the Assar Gabrielsson fund at http://www.agfond.se

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