This laboratory study is collecting and storing tissue, blood, and bone marrow samples from young patients with cancer. Collecting and storing samples of tissue, blood, and bone marrow from patients with cancer to study in the laboratory may help doctors learn more about changes that may occur in DNA and identify biomarkers related to cancer.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:

I. Establish and bank cell lines and/or xenografts from pediatric patients with cancer.

II. Establish continuous cell lines, under carefully controlled conditions, from pediatric patients with cancer.

III. Establish transplantable xenografts in immunocompromised mice from tumor cells that are difficult to establish as continuous cell lines in vitro.

IV. Create a bank of cell lines and generate sufficient vials of cryopreserved cells for distribution to investigators with approved COG biology protocols. V. Characterize cell lines from childhood cancers with respect to DNA short tandem repeat molecular profile as a "fingerprint" of original cell line identity.

VI. Characterize cell lines for the ability for sustained growth in tissue culture and/or as mouse xenografts.

VII. Characterize cell lines for mycoplasma contamination. VIII. Characterize cell lines for expression of molecular makers that confirm the tumor-type of the cell line and the immortal nature of the cells (telomerase) and the expression of molecular markers that may correlate with drug resistance.

OUTLINE: This is a multicenter study.

Specimens are stratified according to disease (acute lymphoblastic leukemia vs acute myeloid leukemia vs lymphoma vs osteogenic sarcoma vs Ewing family of tumors vs rhabdomyosarcoma vs primitive neuroectodermal tumor vs glioma vs astrocytoma vs rhabdoid tumors vs hepatoblastoma vs retinoblastoma vs Wilms tumor vs germ cell tumors vs other diagnoses).

Leftover tissue from diagnostic procedures and/or surgery is cryopreserved and banked. Blood and/or bone marrow are also collected and banked. Cell lines are established and characterized via reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction and/or flow cytometry for biomarkers and by DNA fingerprinting. Markers to be identified may include the following:

NEUROBLASTOMA: tyrosine hydroxylase, protein gene product (PGP) 9.5, GD2, HLA class I, and HSAN 1.2 antigens

EWING FAMILY OF TUMORS: EWS-FLI1, EWS-ERG, and PGP 9.5

RETINOBLASTOMA: interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein

ACUTE LYMPHOBLASTIC LEUKEMIA: immunophenotype

ALVEOLOR RHADOMYOSARCOMA: PAX3-FKHR, PAX7-FKHR, and MyoD1

ALL CELL TYPES: telomerase expression including hTR and hTERTMutations of TP53 gene are detected by flow cytometry and/or immunocytochemistry.

No results of these tests are provided to the patient, the patient's physician, or the patient's medical records.

Inclusion Criteria:

• All malignant tissues from childhood cancers allowed including the following:

  • Brain tumors (all types)

    • Tissue should be submitted to CNS Committee Resource labs to be forwarded for this study, unless instructed otherwise on the COG web site

  • Ewing family of tumors

  • Rhabdomyosarcomas

  • Other soft tissue sarcomas

  • Osteogenic sarcomas

  • Rhabdoid tumors

  • Neuroblastomas

    • Viable material for cell culture for neuroblastoma is collected via COG-ANBL00B1 and should not be submitted via this study unless the patient cannot be enrolled on COG-ANBL00B1*

  • Retinoblastomas

  • Anaplastic Wilms tumor

  • Germ cell tumors

  • Leukemias/lymphomas

    • Acute myeloid leukemia (AML)

      • Blood samples and bone marrow samples from patients at second relapse and beyond may be submitted for this study
      • Bone marrow samples at diagnosis or first relapse must be submitted to an AML resource lab and will be forwarded for this study at the discretion of the AML Committee

    • Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)

      • Blood samples may be submitted directly to this study
      • Bone marrow samples must be submitted to an ALL resource lab and will be forwarded for this study at the discretion of the ALL Committee

• Enrolled on a COG therapeutic, biology, or tissue banking protocol that allows collection of tissue for research and submission to a COG-designated resource laboratory

  • Participation in this protocol is not permitted until after tissue requirements for any active COG disease-specific therapeutic, biology, or banking protocols have been satisfied
  • Material may only be submitted for this protocol if tissue is available in excess of that required for satisfying active disease-specific therapeutic and biological protocols

• Patients with diagnosis pending are eligible

Patients enrolled on the Children Oncology Group (COG) therapeutic, biologic, or tissue banking protocols that allow collection of tissue for research studies