Unlocking Brain Tumors

The second annual meeting of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation Institutes met in San Diego earlier this month. The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation reports that neuro-oncology investigators and their individual research teams shared the results of more than 40 pediatric brain tumor research projects funded by the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation (PBTF) through its highly regarded research institute program. Attendees included researchers from each of the PBTF Institutes, at Duke University, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada, and the University of California, San Francisco. Read the full announcement here.

The announcement also indicates that “On May 14, 2008, the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation will announce a multimillion-dollar increase in funding of the PBTF Institute program. Information will be available via PR Newswire and at www.curethekids.org.”

Tags: PBTF, Pediatric, Research // Add Comment »

Join us for an afternoon of wine, appetizers, a jewelry show and  chance to win fabulous raffle prizes! The festivities will take place at the Tuscan Market and Wine Shop, which features a wonderful wine selection along with a delicious Italian-American deli. And just in time for Mother’s Day, we will feature the uniquely handcrafted jewelry by Silpada Designs Sterling Silver.

Tuscan Market and Wine Shop
141 West Wing Street, Arlington Heights, IL 60005 US

Saturday, May 3 - 3:00-6:00p

847-392-9700

Any item purchased will help benefit Unlocking Brain Tumors, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness about brain tumors and cancer. There will be no entrance charge, feel free to invite a friend and call Carrie Gowans at (216) 403-2620 with any questions. 

For information on our gracious host, vendor or beneficiary, visit:
Tuscan Market and Wine Shop:  tuscanwineshop.com
Silpada Designs Sterling Silver: mysilpada.com/sites/kathy.pierce1

Unlocking Brain Tumors:  unlockingbraintumors.org

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CancerCare links to a recent telephonic education session it offered, Treatment Update on Glioblastoma, that aired on 4/20 and can be accessed at their site via Real Player or MP3 podcast. To access the recording, presented by Jeffrey Bruce, MD, PhD, Professor of Neurosurgery, Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons, Program Director for Neuro-Oncology, Columbia Cancer Center, Director, Bartoli Brain Tumor Research Laboratory, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and Erin Columbus, LMSW, Oncology Social Worker, CancerCare, visit the site here.

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The UnlockingBrainTumors.org is getting ready for this Saturday’s ABTA Path to Progress 5k Walk and Run. The ABTA has officially reached its goal of $500,000 dollars raised with a week to go! The UnlockingBrainTumors.org has officially been credited with over $2500 thus far as well as facilitating other direct donations, and we have a team of 15 participants. It looks like it should be a great day in Chicago, 55 degrees and dry. To join our team or make a donation to our team, visit our team page here.

If you have any questions, please contact Mike Tancredi - mike@unlockingbraintumors.org.

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The American Brain Tumor Association reports on an advancement in the diagnosis and prescription of treatment for brain tumors. Typically handled through microscopic examination of tumor tissue and cell samples obtained through invasive biopsy or surgery, the article points to non-invasive characterizations of tumors via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology. The advance, from researchers at at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine can more easily help determine which tumors may be responsive to specific forms of treatment, based on their specific molecular properties. The study was published on line by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS) and is available here (PDF format) or as plain text here.

Tags: ABTA, National Academy of Sciences, Research, Treatment, UCSD // Add Comment »

VirtualTrials.com links to an article on Dr. John Rossmeisl, an assistant professor in the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences (DSACS), who is on developing better therapeutic approaches for managing gliomas.

The article reports that Rossmeisl, “a veterinary neurologist on faculty in the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine(www.vetmed.vt.edu) at Virginia Tech has been awarded funding from the Wake Forest University Translational Science Institute to study innovative approaches for treating brain tumors in dogs, cats and humans”.

It indicates that the researchers will be studying tissue samples from affected animals in search of these proteins that are not otherwise present in normal brain tissues; pointing out that identifying these proteins could further document the animal’s suitability as a model for studying pre-clinical human disease, according to Rossmeisl, and ultimately lead to the development of more precisely targeted methods for managing these tumors.

“Another portion of the work is focused on the development of powerful new cancer treatments. Through a process known as convection enhanced delivery (CED), the researchers are removing the diseased tissues and testing the application of a proprietary experimental compound. This agent is used to “bathe” the margins of the area in which the tumor was removed and it has been designed in a way that it will only bind with receptors in tumor cells expressing abnormal proteins”.

You can read the full article here.

Tags: Research, Treatment // Add Comment »

Evanston Northwestern Healthcare reports that Dr. Nina Paleologos has received the 2008 Tim Gullikson Spirit Award. As stated at The Tim & Tom Gullikson Foundation, “the Tim Gullikson Spirit Award is presented to a brain tumor patient, caregiver, volunteer, corporation or benefactor, that embraces the fighting spirit and positive attitude that Tim used to battle — and live with — brain tumors, and in doing so, give hope to others”. According to Scott Stettner, Chief Executive Officer of the foundation, “Under the leadership of Dr. Paleologos, the Neuro-Oncology Program at ENH has earned a national reputation in providing excellent patient care, advancing medical education, and offering invaluable support programs for patients, caregivers and family members. We are thrilled to recognize her deep professional dedication, pride and compassion.”

You can link to a press release about Dr. Paleologos’ award here or link to The Tim & Tom Gullikson Foundation here.

UnlockingBrainTumors.org and others have nominated Al Musella of The Musella Foundation for Brain Tumor Research and Information for the 2009 award.

Tags: Musella Foundation, Tim & Tom Gullikson Foundation // Add Comment »

IBTA Secretary Kathy Oliver has authored “Out of the Shadows” for European magazine The Parliament for its February 2008 edition; according to the IBTA site, the article “develops the argument that more attention needs to be devoted to the rarer and less common cancers, including brain tumours, and while screening, early detection, and healthy lifestyle are good in themselves they are not relevant as a public policy strategy for brain tumours”. Link to the PDF article here.

Tags: Awareness, IBTA, Support // Add Comment »

An article from the Associated Press discusses some of the decisions cancer patients must face, including costs behind various treatment paths, and balancing survival and quality of life with financial strain on one’s family. You can view the article here.

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The North American Brain Tumor Coalition (NABTC) reports that it was an important victory for the brain tumor community this week when the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly (95-4) approved an amendment to a budget resolution to increase NIH funding by more than $2.1 billion, above and beyond the $900 million already recommended by the Senate Budget Committee for NIH. The result is that NIH may receive nearly $3 billion above FY 2008 funding levels. While the potential funding increase still has a series of hurdles in the budget and appropriations process, the overwhelming support for the funding increases is a very positive first step. Please see this post at the NABTC site, including a link to the Cancer Leadership Council’s Endorsement of the Specter-Harkin Amendment that added $2.1 billion to the request.

Also, see this post at the National Brain Tumor Foundation site about Brain Tumor Action Week, May 4-10, including how to get involved in the activities in Washington D.C.

Tags: NABTC, NIH, National Brain Tumor Foundation // Add Comment »