Dedicated in Memory of Jennifer Swartz Danna 1973-2006

2006-10-14T17:46:00.000-07:00

WE GIVE SPECIAL BOOKS TO KIDS WITH A VERY SICK PARENT...TO HELP THEM UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING!

If you need books...Write Tatum's Uncle at:

stan@SwartzFoundationAtBarrow.com

In Memory of Jennifer Swartz Danna 1973-2006

"THIS WEB-SITE IS DEDICATED IN MEMORY OF JENNIFER DANNA & HER FELLOW BRAIN TUMOR PATIENTS WHO LOST THE BATTLE:

2006-10-10T23:59:00.000-07:00

LAUREN KAYE...ASHLEY ANDERSON...TIM MAYHEW...MAKENZIE MOORE...COURTNEY MALEDON...NICKY MAILLIARD...SETH FELDMAN...MARK ERICKSON...DICK ARNOLD"

A message from Emily and Caroline in memory of their sister Ashley

2006-10-08T12:17:00.000-07:00

2006-08-23T07:58:00.000-07:00

Brain Tumor survivor heads back to class
"Matt Claver has marked his progress by the small things: Speaking words. Learning to swallow. Eating a cinnamon-flavored Pop Tart. And, on Tuesday, going to school with everyone else. As the 16-year-old lugged his backpack out of honors physics class shortly before 10 a.m., he could have been any other teenager, at any other school, marking any other first day.

He isn’t. He is a Brain Tumor survivor, marked by the scar down the back of his head and the determination in his eyes. And he is, by all accounts, an inspiration....

2006-08-15T07:04:00.000-07:00

Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center
Office of Public Affairs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: RESEARCHERS TARGET CELLS THAT CAUSE BRAIN CANCER

Building on previous research linking a common childhood brain cancer called medulloblastoma with high levels of the Notch2 gene, a team led by Charles Eberhart, M.D., Ph.D., is exploiting Notch2 gene products known to regulate brain stem-cell growth and survival. The new studies provide the first hint that a class of drugs, called gamma secretase inhibitors, which block Notch proteins and currently are being developed for Alzheimer's disease, specifically kills stem cells responsible for creating and sustaining a brain tumor.

"Drugs that we typically use to treat cancer don't seem to kill tumor stem cells," says Eberhart, associate professor of pathology and oncology, and after the stem cells survive an onslaught of chemotherapy and radiation, they are left to regrow new tumors. Gamma secretase inhibitors appear to overcome this barrier.

Eberhart and postdoctoral fellow Xing Fan, M.D., Ph.D., treated medulloblastoma cell cultures for 48 hours with a gamma secretase inhibitor and found that tumor growth slowed. Closer inspection of the types of cells in the culture revealed that the cancer's stem cells were almost completely eliminated by the drug, but remained in drugless cultures.

Intrigued, the researchers injected the drugged and drug-free cultured cells into mice. All 24 control mice with cells not treated with the Notch-blocking drug grew large tumors. Mice that received cells previously treated with the drug fared much better. Only two of eight mice in this group grew very small tumors - less than one-tenth the size of control tumors.

"Medulloblastoma stem cells have much higher Notch gene activity than other cells in the tumor, which may be why the stem cells die first. They are more dependent on the Notch pathway, and blocking it causes severe problems," Eberhart explains.

Although the stem cells are a very small percentage of the entire tumor - approximately 1 percent - other researchers have identified heavy-duty transporters on their cell surfaces that may pump out chemotherapy drugs and cause cancers to become treatment-resistant.

Eberhart and Fan are continuing laboratory studies to select an appropriate gamma secretase inhibitor for clinical trials.

This study was funded by the Children's Cancer Foundation of Baltimore, Md. Additional authors include William Matsui, Leila Khaki, and Duncan Stearns of Johns Hopkins; and Jiong Chun and Yue-Ming Li of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

2006-08-07T12:19:00.000-07:00

A MESSAGE FROM OUR CEO

There wiil be no new posts to the Brain Tumor Channel until August 14th as a Silent Prayer in memory of Jennifer Swartz Danna...whose funeral was held yesterday....and all of her fellow brain tumor patients who lost the Battle!

Due to the many request that I have received...we will be starting something new on August 14th.

INDIVIDUAL PERSONALIZED PHOTO ALBUMS (on this web-site) in Support and/or in Memory of your Loved Ones.

Simply send me your photos...up to 100 photos (Jpegs only)...along with the name/words you would like on the headline of your album. I will create your album for you and a link will be posted on this website. There will be no charge for this service...in memory of Jennifer!

send to:
stanswartz@mac.com

Best,

Stan Swartz
The Brain Tumor Channel

What makes some brain-tumor cells so resistant to treatment? (A MD Health Channel Video)

2006-08-02T09:54:00.000-07:00

Adrienne C. Scheck, Ph.D.
Senior Staff Scientist
Neuro-Oncology Research Laboratory
Barrow Neurological Institute

CLICK BELOW TO SEE 528 PHOTOS FROM THE BRAIN TUMOR WALKATHON (photos by MD Health Channel)

2006-08-02T01:01:00.000-07:00

528 PHOTOS ....CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE 2006 SSBTR WALKATHON PHOTO ALBUM...

"I DECIDED TO MAKE TRAGEDY INTO TRIUMPH!"...LANETTE IS A 7 YEAR SURVIVOR!!!!

2006-08-01T01:05:00.000-07:00

A MD Health Channel production

2006-08-01T01:00:00.000-07:00

"CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE SSBTR WALKATHON PHOTO GALLERY

Joe Arpaio
Sheriff
Maricopa County Sheriff's Office

"HEROS" :OUR 8 MINUTE DOCUMENTARY WAS FILMED AT LAST YEARS SSBTR WALKATHON

2006-07-26T09:51:00.000-07:00

A documentary dedicated to Lauren Kaye
Produced by Stan Swartz

Brain tumor opens her mind to art

2006-07-25T10:47:00.000-07:00

Brain tumor opens her mind to art: "After a brain tumor was removed from the left side of Sandy Allen's brain, she began art therapy sessions that unleashed the artist she never knew existed. She is shown here in her home in front of a wall she collaged using pictures from magazines."

"Neurologists now recommend regular MRI brain scans for patients with lung, breast, and other cancers that carry a high-risk of brain metastasis

2006-07-25T09:00:00.000-07:00

MORE....according to an Associated Press article released earlier this month. The recommendation stems from the availability of sophisticated new treatments including stereotactic radiosurgeryfor metastatic brain tumors that are detected early.
Neurologists from the Chicago Institute of Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch (CINN) and the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Center explained that cancer patients are surviving longer, which increases the risk of metastatic brain tumors. Up to 40 percent of lung cancer patients and 33 percent of breast cancer patients develop these tumors. Patients with melanoma, kidney cancer, and colon cancer are also at risk. Routine brain scans can detect these tumors, which can be treated with drugs as well as stereotactic radiosurgery.
Among the sophisticated radiosurgery treatment options for patients at CINN is Gamma Knife(R) surgery. There is also a Leksell Gamma Knife(R) at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Overall, Leksell Gamma Knife(R) is installed at more than 100 facilities in the U.S. (for center locations, visit http://www.elekta.com). Leksell Gamma Knife(R) from Elekta remains the solution of choice and the standard of care for intracranial stereotactic radiosurgery.
'The combination of early detection and Gamma Knife(R) surgery provides one of the best possible outcomes for patients who are treated via stereotactic radiosurgery,' says Jim Rose, VP Marketing, North America. 'It also offers the gentlest care. Because the procedure is wholly noninvasive, patients often go home the same day they receive treatment.'
Often referred to as 'the gold standard' for radiosurgery, the Leksell Gamma Knife(R) from Elekta is the standard of care for neurosurgery, with thousands of published papers on treatment efficacy and improved quality of life for patients.
Gamma Knife(R) surgery is a noninvasive method for treating targets in the brain. It delivers a single, high dose of irradiation to the precisely located target, without harming the surrounding healthy tissue."

2006-07-25T08:08:00.000-07:00

Vaccine Slows Glioblastoma In Phase II Trial:
[Abstract - medpagetoday]
"A novel vaccine appears to sharply extend life expectancy in people with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), according to results of a phase II clinical trial presented here today. The vaccine targets the epidermal growth factor receptor variant III (EGFRvIII), a tumor-specific cell surface protein expressed on about 30% of GBM tumors but absent on normal tissues, said Amy Heimberger, M.D., an assistant professor of neurosurgery at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. 'Median survival has not yet been reached' for the 23 patients enrolled in the clinical trial, conducted at M. D. Anderson and at Duke University Medical Center, Dr. Heimberger said in a statement before her presentation at the annual meeting of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons here. However, after an average of a year of follow-up, she said, median survival is at least 19 months. By contrast, she said, median survival is 14 months for patients with GBM who are treated with radiation and Temodar (temozolomide)...."

Hope for new brain tumor vaccine

2006-07-25T00:05:00.000-07:00

BBC NEWS | Health | Hope for new brain tumour vaccine:
"A vaccine has been developed which may be able to fight the most aggressive form of brain tumour, scientists say.

US researchers say their vaccine increased survival times for the 23 glioblastoma multiforme patients they tested it on by at least 18 months.

Only four patients went on to die from the cancer, the study to be presented at a meeting of experts in the US said.

A larger trial of the jab, which works by targeting a protein thought to drive the tumour's spread, is now planned.
This is exciting because people have been trying to use immunotherapy against gliomas for a long time
Amy HeimbergerResearcher
It uses an artificial form of the protein, which is found on the outside of 30-50% of tumours, to alert the immune system to its presence and attack it.

The brain is tricked into thinking the protein, known as EGFRvIII, is foreign, and fighter cells in the immune system are sent in.

Amy Heimberger, assistant professor of neurosurgery at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas, said the vaccine was an easy-to-use 'off-the-shelf' treatment that could potentially help half of all patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM)."

Gliadel Wafer Demonstrates Long-Term Survival Benefit for Patients with High-Grade Malignant Gliomas

2006-07-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

READ MORE: "MGI PHARMA, INC. (Nasdaq:MOGN) today announced the
publication of long-term (56 month) follow-up data showing that
Gliadel(R) Wafer provides a durable long-term survival benefit for
patients with high-grade malignant glioma.

Gliadel Wafer is approved by the FDA for treatment of patients
with newly-diagnosed high-grade malignant glioma as an adjunct to
surgery and radiation. Gliadel Wafer is also indicated to treat
recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) in addition to surgery. The
approval was based on clinical trial results showing the median
survival of patients with high-grade malignant gliomas increased to
13.9 months from 11.6 months, and the median survival of patients with
recurrent GBM increased to 6.4 months from 4.6 months."

Woman fights on after surgery to remove tumor

2006-07-24T10:43:00.000-07:00

MORE: "Darcie Tossetti has her brain to herself now.

Gone is the tumor she affectionately called 'Klingon.'
The grape-sized growth, lodged in her frontal lobe, was removed at
Loma Linda University Medical Center in December 2004.
A scar on her forehead, along her hair line from her left ear to her
right ear, is the only outward evidence of Darcie's eight-hour surgery
to extricate the alien invader.
The growth was diagnosed two months earlier as a meningioma, a benign
tumor that develops between the lining of the brain and the skull.
'On Oct. 16, 2004, I heard five words that would change mine and my
family's lives forever you have a brain tumor,' Darcie recalls.
'I was lucky. They got it while it was still relatively small. It
was a slow-growing tumor,' she says. 'When I realized how lucky I was,
I stopped feeling sorry for myself.'"

Sheriff Joe Arpaio Talks About Our Good Kids & the Walkathon

2006-07-23T17:07:00.000-07:00

THIS VIDEO WAS FILMED AT LAST YEARS SSBTR WALKATHON

A MD Health Channel production

Comedian wields laughter as weapon against cancer... Comic has had four brain tumors

2006-07-23T10:55:00.000-07:00

BBC News writer Ivan Noble was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour in 2002. Since then he has been sharing his experiences in an online diary

2006-07-20T23:28:00.000-07:00

BBC NEWS /CLICK TO READ THE ENTIRE DIARY

Brain balloon, liquid radiation stops tumor

2006-07-16T10:46:00.000-07:00

MORE: "Up until six years ago, there was nothing extraordinary about Jason Wilson's life. He worked his job in the air-conditioning business by day and spent time with his family by night. Then, in February 2000, he was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor - a tumor that's kept recurring, changing Wilson's life. His doctors thought he'd die six or seven months after he was diagnosed with the first one, but he's still alive and kicking."

2006-07-08T08:38:00.000-07:00

Barrow growing...Neurological facility's 7-story tower at St. Joe's to double capacity, add high-tech procedures
(Arizona Republic-July 8)

"It's where Saudi royalty came for intricate back surgery.

It helped treat Pvt. Jessica Lynch's war injuries.

It's where patients are chilled almost to death so their brain surgeries can go more smoothly.

And now it's getting bigger.

The new Barrow Neurosciences Tower at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in central Phoenix will open to patients next week. The $160 million, seven-story tower will double the surgical capacity at world-renowned Barrow.

Barrow now will have the largest number of operating rooms of its type in the world, said Dr. Robert Spetzler, director of the Barrow Neurological Institute.

"There are few, if any, neuroscience centers like this in the world," he said. "It's incredible to have a building this size, with this many surgical suites and this many patient beds solely dedicated to neuroscience care."

For Barrow, the expansion means a chance to add technology as well as beds.

Among the new features is an extremely powerful magnetic resonance imaging machine that can provide immediate brain scans during operations.

That will let doctors check during surgery to make sure the entire brain tumor has been removed. Now, patients have to be sewn up, sent for the scans and then sent back for surgery again....First of its type

The MRI machine, a 3-Tesla Intraoperative Magnetic, is the first of its type to be installed at any hospital. Other MRI machines are typically 1.5-Tesla, which means Barrow's new MRI provides even more detailed scans.

"It's the difference between regular television and high-definition television," Spetzler said......Because the magnet is so powerful - it can pull a gun out of a holster - patients are loaded into the machine on special iron-free equipment.

Another gee-whiz feature of the tower is its "supercool" operating room, where the temperature can be reduced to 55 degrees from 68 to 70 degrees in just three minutes.

The chilling is key for a special technique Spetzler developed to bring a patient to the brink of death to lower the risk of complications during brain surgery.

In "cardiac standstill," doctors chill the patient's body so that the heart and blood flow are stopped. That makes it easier for a surgeon to go in and clip a brain aneurysm. Spetzler has done the procedure 107 times. The Discovery Health Channel broadcast one of the operations recently.

The neuroscience tower also contains:
• Eleven surgical suites dedicated to neurosurgery. Each suite has a microscope connected to a computer that allows surgeons to see on a computer screen an extremely magnified image of what they are operating on.

• All of the suites will have video-conferencing capabilities that will allow physicians and medical students around the world to view what is happening in the operating rooms.

• Sixty-four intensive-care beds and 80 acute-care beds devoted to neurological and neurosurgical care. That's more than double what the hospital has now.

Barrow also has the largest neurosurgery residency-training program in the nation and more certified neuroscience registered nurses than any other hospital in the United States."

NEWSRELEASE: Radiotherapy advance points way to noninvasive brain cancer treatment

2006-07-05T10:59:00.000-07:00

In the Jan. 1, 2006 issue of the journal Clinical Cancer Research, Gelsomina "Pupa" De Stasio, professor of physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and colleagues report on research into using a new radiotherapy technique for fighting GBM with the element gadolinium. The approach might lead to less invasive treatments that offer greater promise of alleviating the disease.

"It's the most lethal cancer there is. The only good thing about it is that, if left untreated, death is relatively quick and pain-free, since this tumor does not form painful metastases in other parts of the body," says De Stasio.

The therapy, called Gadolinium Synchrotron Stereotactic Radiotherapy (GdSSR), requires a gadolinium compound to find tumor cells and penetrate them, down into their nuclei, while sparing the normal brain. Then, the patient's head is irradiated with x-rays. For these x-ray photons the whole brain is transparent, while gadolinium is opaque. Then, where gadolinium is localized-in the nuclei of the cancer cells only-what's known as "the photoelectric effect" takes place.

"Exactly 100 years after Einstein first explained this effect, we have found a way to make it useful in medicine," De Stasio says. "In this effect, atoms absorb photons and emit electrons. The emitted electrons are very destructive for DNA, but have a very short range of action. Therefore, to induce DNA damage that the cancer cells cannot repair, and consequently cell death, gadolinium atoms must be localized in the nuclei of cancer cells."READ MOREt

Cancer's road map to metastasis revealed

2006-07-04T14:49:00.000-07:00

"Scientists have discovered how cancer spreads from a primary site to other places in the body in a finding that could open doors for new ways of treating and preventing advanced disease.

Instead of a cell just breaking off from a tumor and traveling through the bloodstream to another organ where it forms a secondary tumor, or metastasis, researchers in the United States have shown that the cancer sends out envoys to prepare the new site.

Intercepting those envoys, or blocking their action with drugs, might help to prevent the spread of cancer or to treat it in patients in which it has already occurred.

"We are basically looking at all the earlier steps that are involved in metastasis that we weren't previously aware of. It is complex but we are opening the door to all these things that occur before the tumor cell implants itself," said Professor David Lyden, of Cornell University in New York. "It is a map to where the metastasis will occur," he added in an interview."MORE

2006-05-20T13:00:00.000-07:00

A MESSAGE FROM LANETTE

"Dick Arnold graduates to Heaven"

"It is a bitter sweet moment. ...Our wonderful MIRACLE MAN graduated to Heaven. Although he will be DEEPLY missed I am very happy that he is dancing with the angels and has no more pain. I can just see it now as I type he is walking and talking and of course he has everyone smiling or laughing because of his humor. Dick sure was an example of true courage! One thing is for sure there are no STINKING BRAIN TUMORS in HEAVEN!

As soon as Sharon let's me know I will send out a message or call with arrangement times etc."

Lanette McLamb-Veres

May 20, 2006 11:22:57 AM