My hope is that these terms and labels grow in familiarity because of advancement in treatments and saved lives. For today, here is what we mean when we talk about a brain tumor:

• Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) – This tumor forms in the white matter of the brain. GBM represents 52% of all cerebral tumors, and are most common in white and Asian men over the age of 50, even though this aggressive form of brain cancer strikes across all ages and ethnicities.

• Atrocytoma — a tumor that forms from the glial cells in the brain (support cells for neurons). These can be benign or malignant (GBM is a form of strocytoma) and appear in young children as well.

• Oligoendroglioma — arise from the oligodendrocytes (insulating cells for axoms). They appear mostly in adults around age 35 and represent about 10% of all primary brain tumors and tend to recur after treatment.

• Ependymoma — arises from tissues in the brain that surround the drainage system of the brain. They represent about 5% of adult brain tumors, and 10% of pediatric brain tumors, peaking at age 35 and earlier at age 5. Often they end up causing hydrocephalus, or “water on the brain.”

One of the main goals of The Elliott Foundation is to remove the stress that comes from the bombardment of medical terminology and treatment labels. We speak your language as we walk with you on your brain cancer journey while providing the most-up-to-date and credible information on advanced treatment options and comprehensive support services.

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/article/244707/483/New-Vaccine-Helping-Brain-Cancer-Patients

This is a phase II clinical trial using heat shock protein vaccine (HSPPC-96) for patients with newly diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). The trial employs cancer immunotherapy, an important new treatment modality, with HSPPC-96 being a novel approach to active specific immunotherapy. By targeting the immune system and activating a patient specific T-cell response, the vaccine offers a therapy that hopefully targets tumor cells without injury to normal neural and glial structures.

There are only eight medical centers across the country involved in the Heat Shock Protein Vaccine (HSPPC-96) trial including the University of California in San Francisco.

Only patients with an MRI or biopsy that confirms the tumor is a GBM, and who have had no radiation or chemotherapy are eligible.

Only patients who had their tumors partially removed, or who have saved their live brain tumor tissue, can participate because the tumor is used to make the vaccine.

This statement, by Jeff Kolodin, Chair of the National Brain Tumor Society Board of Directors, captures exactly where The Elliott Foundation is today. Jeff speaks from firsthand experience; first, as a 20-year brain tumor survivor, and second, as someone who has helped shepherd the NBTS through a two-year transition that changed the focus of the organization in a major way.

Jeff recently spoke at The Elliott Foundation’s board retreat to offer insight and incentives for TEF’s 2012 expansion. For Jeff and the NBTS, the overriding question during their organization’s transition was, “how do we make the brain tumor community better?”

“When we looked at the top 20 nonprofit organizations, all but one had a singular mission statement,” said Jeff.

We already know what The Elliott Foundation’s laser focus is – to help save lives by expanding brain cancer education and patient access to advanced treatments and comprehensive support programs.

We’ve been educating and helping patients and caregivers for over 10 years. That is why the NBTS came to The Elliott Foundation and asked us to expand our national role as THE lead organization for patient education and support.

To do that, we need to build out a world-class call center and hire Health Information Specialists. Today you can help us make that expansion a reality for thousands of brain cancer patients and caregivers. Please consider making a donation today. (link to donation) Photo of Tamara, Jeff, and Dellann, photo credit Michael DePorter

Hi Everyone. Something has been on my mind for the last several months, so today, I thought I would BLOG about it.

I’ve been really slow over the last two months to respond to all the day-to-day patient & caregiver requests for help that come in and I wanted to explain why. If you’ve been reading this BLOG or follow up on our EndBrainCancer facebook page or via Twitter at EndBrainCancer, then you know that we are in the midst as an organization of expanding our patient support services programs due to the demand created when the National Brain Tumor Society dropped their day-to-day patient support services so that they could focus their attention on brain cancer reseasrch. So, before we can expand and before I can hire the staff that we need, I need to raise about $250,000, so that is what I’ve been focusing most of my energies towards.

I apologize to those that I have not yet been able to respond to but I am doing my best. Thank you for understanding.

Blessings,
Dellann Elliott
Founder, President & CEO
The Chris Elliott Fund/The Elliott Foundation
www.ChrisElliottFund.org and info@ChrisElliottFund.org