Researchers – About AGORA
Most children are born healthy, but 2-3% of children are born with a congenital malformation or will develop cancer at a young age. The causes of most structural anomalies in children are still largely unknown. For some children, genetic predisposition seems to be an important factor. But circumstances shortly before and during pregnancy may also play a role, such as health problems of the mother, diet, medication use, and occupation of the parents.
To facilitate research into the causes and consequences of congenital malformations, such as malformations of the kidneys and urinary tract, intestines and anus, lip and palate, and the heart, and of childhood cancers, the Amalia children’s hospital, the Science Department IQ Health, and the Department of Genetics of the Radboud university medical center (Radboudumc) in Nijmegen, the Netherlands started a data- and biobank called AGORA in 2004. AGORA is the abbreviation of Aetiologic research into Genetic and Occupational / Environmental Risk factors for Anomalies in children.
Blood (or saliva) is collected and stored from patients attending a paediatric department in the Radboudumc or in other hospitals participating in AGORA. Blood is drawn from the biological parents as well. In addition, the mother is asked to complete a questionnaire with questions about circumstances around the pregnancy period. We also collected data and biological material from unaffected control children and their parents in 2011 and 2021. The AGORA questionnaire is available for download here
The ultimate goal of AGORA is to investigate whether certain anomalies in children can be prevented or can be treated more adequately in the future and whether we can predict the prognosis of affected children.
Elk kind verdient een goede start. Helpt u mee dit mogelijk te maken?