This Made Me Sad: It’s Just Benign.com is on Break

I’m worried. The wonderfully, fierce, tenacious Beth Rosenthal appears to be fighting another health issue. Here’s an email I just received:

“We at It's Just Benign hope you're enjoying the summer. We regret to tell you that IJB is temporarily on a break. Beth Rosenthal, the founder & Executive Director, has been ill for a few months and needs to take care of herself. Hopefully she'll be back on her feet in a few weeks. She apologizes for not sending out thank you letters, returning emails, etc. over the last few months but, she's not up to it. Unfortunately, no one presently understands how to run IJB like Beth does. Therefore, please accept our apologies while she take a much needed break and hopefully she'll regain her strength soon. If you need to reach Beth, email her at ItsJustBenign@gmail.com and she'll reply as promptly as she can.”

If you know Beth, please wish her the best, contribute some ¢ or even some $ to her website and, if you are so inclined, pray for her.

I will.

John

PS - Here's a link to her website: http://www.itsjustbenign.org/

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Defeat GBM Research Collaborative

This is a youtube video about the Defeat GBM mission.

The video is a bit slow and bit wonky for those of us interested in fast talk and visual action but, at the same time, somehow appropriate.

According to the National Brain Tumor Society website, “Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) research is on the cusp of genetic and molecular discoveries that will forever alter current diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic achievements. A highly aggressive and complex brain tumor type, GBM tumors are also one of the most devastating forms of cancer, affecting thousands of Americans each day.

To address this growing need, the National Brain Tumor Society in 2013 launched the Defeat GBM Research Collaborative, a multi-faceted and concentrated research-based effort, which aims to double the five-year survival rate of GBM patients -- in just five years. The Initiative will drive the advancement of this therapeutic development area to better understand how to combat its resistance and adaptability, and deliver new and effective treatments to improve patient survival.”

Healthline’s Best Cancer Blogs of 2014

This list is posted on the Healthline website. The post was written by Ann Pietrangelo, the winners were selected by Tracy Rosecrans and medically reviewed by George Krucik, MD, MBA: http://www.healthline.com/health-slideshow/best-cancer-blogs#1

 

Many of the blogs are sponsored/hosted by companies, e.g. the Cancer Treatment Centers of America blog: http://www.cancercenter.com/community/discussions/blog/

And while that doesn’t mean the information is less useful, I wanted you to know that upfront. Here’s the rest:

• The Cure Magazine Blog: http://www.curetoday.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/blog.showindex
• Stand up 2 Cancer Blog: http://www.standup2cancer.org/blog
• Blog for a Cure: http://www.blogforacure.com/
• Our Cancer Blog from John Hopkins: http://our-cancer.blogs.hopkinsmedicine.org/
• I had Cancer: http://www.ihadcancer.com/h3-blog
• Cancerwise – MD Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas: http://www2.mdanderson.org/cancerwise/
• The NY Times Cancer Blog: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/category/body/cancer/
• Dr. Len’s Cancer Blog – American Cancer Society: http://www.cancer.org/aboutusrlensblog/
• Cancer in Context – Reuters: http://blogs.reuters.com/cancer-in-context/
• Colorado Cancer Blogs – University of Colorado Cancer Center: http://www.coloradocancerblogs.org/
• Cancer Survivorship Blog: http://www.provcancerblog.org/
• The Oncolink Cancer Blogs: http://www.oncolink.org/blogs/

Great ABTA Conference Agenda

This is a terrific agenda for first session of the upcoming American Brain Tumor Association annual “Patient and Family Conference. I like the focus on new treatments and technologies, the top name presenters and the range of topics, especially the inclusion of immunotherapies in the opening session. 

I’ve been to this conference and, based on that experience, can tell you that the ABTA does a great job with this conference. If you are a brain tumor victim, caretaker, friend or family member, you may find this wonderfully informative.

I won’t be attending this year. If you do, please shoot me an email and tell me about what you saw and heard. 

John

ABTA Webinar: “Immunotherapy for Brain Tumors”

Immunotherapy is a hot topic in the world of brain tumor treatment. So I thought you all should know about this timely (and free) American Brain Tumor Association webinar on immunotherapy from Dr. Parney, associate professor of Neurosurgery, at Mayo Clinic.

If you, like me, had no idea what immunotherapy is or does, the webinar promo blurb explains that immunotherapy  is all about stimulating the immune system to fight cancer and recent research points to this as a promising strategy for malignant brain tumors – see http://johnstumor.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-2014-american-society-of-clinical.html   

According to the promotional email, this webinar will review approaches to cancer immunotherapy including immune-modifying agents and cancer vaccines.  Lastly, and I like this part, Dr. Parney will discuss current opportunities to participate in brain tumor immunotherapy clinical trials.

Want to learn more or sign up? Here’s a link: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/394211462

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