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This is from our friendsat the Chris Elliott Fund. Sounds like a great event! It is free, but requires registration
Sounds interesting
Interesting - will be watching this as they apply it to people.
This project did not find a link between cytomegalovirus and brain tumors. However, they sensationalized the headline by saying brain tumors are not caused by viruses then went on to say antiviral therapy is misguided.
This is a very controversial subject. I have seen people who did well with antiviral drugs. Some researchers reported that all or almost all of the gbm samples they tested had the virus. It is possible that the virus does not cause the tumor but allows it to become more malignant and to evade the immune system. If true, then antivirals - or even vaccines against cytomegalovirus, make a lot of sense.
There has been a study on human trials of antivirals. Unfortunately the study was designed poorly. It had good results, but poorly designed studies are not considered proof that something works. What is needed is a better designed study. It may be impossible to do a gold standard phase 3 randomized double blinded trial because the drugs are expensive and the companies that make them are not interested in supporting brain tumor trials, so we may have to do it on our own in a virtual way. I am working on that.
This trial may be a good choice for GBM patients who have unmethylated MGMT
I need help with this - I am giving a lecture about speeding up clinical trial enrollment and need to know what the barriers are. Please take this quick survey - only 6 questions. Thanks!
This is a first for us: a BMX fundraiser! Sounds like fun!
Nice story on our National Walk To End Brain Tumors
This is for colorectal cancer but it shows that adding treatments doesn't always make things better. Even if it sounds like it makes sense and should work, cancer is a very complex disease and the only way to tell if something works is clinical trials
This is from our friends at the Chris Elliott Fund.
This may show how Gliolan works. It is a dye that makes the tumor light up during surgery - approved in Europe but not the USA.
Exciting approach. Not done in people yet, but I will be watching this one.
We need help raising money to fund brain tumor research! Go to http://WalkToEndBrainTumors.org and see if there is an event near you. If there is no event near you, contact us to help get one started. If there is an event near you, contact the event leader and volunteer to help promote the event!
Sounds interesting in theory - but a clinical trial is needed to test it. Should be easy because both components are fda approved for other things.
Keep in mind arsenic at the wrong dose can be fatal.
This phase 1 trial did better than expected (but that is only with the endpoint of safety and immune response, they did not mention survival in the article). Sounds like a great concept. They have an approach similiar to ICT-107 but with different targets. We will be keeping an eye on this one!
This reinforces the idea that biopsy of brainstem tumors is not as dangerous as we used to think. It is becoming more common and as this study reveals, can have a major impact in outcome. Almost 10% of the time, it turned out to be a TB infection instead of brain tumor(this is India - I would assume a much lower rate here in the USA). On the other hand, it shows that studies of brainstem tumors done without a biopsy have to be interpreted carefully - as you are never quite sure that it was a tumor to begin with - and if it is a tumor, which grade
Unfortunately, this treatment - by itself - did not help much. The treatment sound interesting. Perhaps if combined with other treatments it would have a larger impact. Another take away from this study is the low bar - they were trying for 1 month progression free survival (for the group who failed Avastin) . I never heard of using that before. And only 20% of the pateints achieved 1 month progression free survival. Points to the need for more research.
This is a free conference for patients, doctors and caregivers. They offer a free 15 minute consultation with a brain tumor doctor. Some of my favorite brain tumor doctors are speaking. It will be worth going!
(The Musella Foundation is not involved in it - just passing along the announcement!)
