Living with Brain Tumors - Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Living with Brain Tumors: 

A Focus on Gliomas 

Sponsored by the Center for 

Neuro-Oncology 

Sept. 8, 2012 

Presented by: 

Patrick Wen, MD 

Director, Center for Neuro-Oncology 

Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center 

Department of Medical Oncology 

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute 

Professor of Neurology 

Harvard Medical School 

Conference co-chairs: 

Lisa Doherty, APRN, BC, OCN 

Andrew Norden, MD, MPH 

David A. Reardon, MD 

Patrick Wen, MD

Living with Brain Tumors: A Focus on Gliomas 

Welcome 

Dear Friends, 

It is an exciting time at Dana-Farber/Brigham 

and Women’s Cancer Center (DF/BWCC). Over 

the past few years, we have made important 

strides in research and the development of new 

treatments for patients with brain tumors. 

With the help of many of our patients, Dana- 

Farber participated in a large study of the drug 

Avastin, which blocks a tumor’s ability to form 

the blood vessels that allow them to thrive and 

grow. Avastin proved effective in patients with 

recurrent gliobastomas and was approved by 

the FDA in 2009. While Avastin is not a cure, it 

has prolonged the life of many patients. A major 

focus of our research is to improve on the results 

of Avastin alone. 

Another major focus of research at Dana-Farber 

is to characterize the molecular and genetic 

abnormalities in brain tumors. It is our hope that, 

over time, this information will enhance our 

ability to uncover the causes of each person’s 

tumor, allowing us to select the most appropriate 

treatment, or speed the development of new, 

targeted therapies. 

We are already making progress. Dana-Farber 

researchers have assisted with the development 

of targeted molecular drugs for glioblastomas 

and are identifying the most promising and 

best combination for our patients. Clinical 

trials are underway on new drugs that target 

the PI3 kinase, one of the most critical pathways 

in glioblastomas. We also have a large research 

program studying the biology of tumor stem cells, 

which are resistant to treatment, and finding the 

best drugs to kill them. In addition, new trials are in 

progress on tumor vaccines to stimulate the body’s 

immune system to fight tumors. 

Although a major focus of research at Dana-Farber is 

finding better treatments for gliomas, we also have 

active research programs for meningiomas, CNS 

lymphomas, ependymomas, brain metastases, and 

other tumor types. 

With your help, we hope to find cures for brain 

tumors. If you would like additional information or 

are interested in supporting this innovative research, 

please consider donating to the Adult Brain Tumor 

Research Fund by contacting me at patrick_wen@ 

dfci.harvard.edu or 617-632-2166; or Susan 

Korsmeyer at susan_korsmeyer@dfci.harvard.edu 

or 617-582-8393. 

Thank you so much. 


Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School 

Director, Center for Neuro-Oncology 

Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center


Agenda 

10:45 – 11 a.m. 

BREAK 

Questions due for panel discussion 

Patrick Wen, 

MD 

8 a.m. 

Registration and coffee (Light breakfast will 

be provided) 

8:25 a.m. 


Welcome and introduction to conference 

11 – 11:15 a.m. 

Nancy Goldsmith Tharler, LICSW 

Caring for the caregiver 

11:15 – 11:50 a.m. 

Stacy Kennedy, MPH, RD, CSO, LDN 

Nutrition 

Nancy Goldsmith 

Tharler, LICSW 

David Reardon, 

MD 

Rameen 

Beroukhim, 

MD, PhD 

Debra LaFrankie, 

RN, OCN 

8:30 – 8:45 a.m. 

David Reardon, MD 

Background information on brain tumors 

and treatments 

8:45 – 9:05 a.m. 

Rameen Beroukhim, MD, PhD 

Brain tumors: Basic science and novel therapies 

9:05 – 9:25 a.m. 


Clinical trials for brain tumors 

9:25 – 9:40 a.m. 

BREAK 

9:40 – 10 a.m. 

Debra LaFrankie, RN, OCN 

Symptom management for patients 

with brain tumors 

10 – 10:15 a.m. 

Alexandra Golby, MD 

Surgical treatment for brain tumors 

11:50 a.m. – 12:05 p.m. 

Eudocia Q. Lee, MD, MPH 

Medical complications of gliomas 

12:05 – 12:10 p.m. 

Susan Korsmeyer 

12:10 – 12:55 p.m. 

LUNCH 

12:55 – 1:15 p.m. 

Halyna Vitagliano, MD 

Thoughts, memories, and brain tumors: 

Cognitive issues 

1:15 – 2:15 p.m. 

Panel discussion moderated by 

Lisa Doherty, APRN, BC, OCN 

Panelists: 

Brian Alexander, MD 

Jane Bausch, LICSW 

Mark Johnson, MD 

Debra LaFrankie, RN, OCN 

Stacy Kennedy, 

MPH, RD, LDN 

Eudocia Q. Lee, 

MD, MPH 

Lisa Doherty, 

APRN, BC, OCN 

10:15 – 10:30 a.m. 

Lakshmi Nayak, MD 

Brian Alexander, MD, MPH 

Radiation therapy for brain tumors 

Mikael Rinne, MD 

Halyna Vitagliano, MD 

10:30 – 10:45 a.m. 

Tony and Wendy O’Neil 

Nancy Campbell, MS 

2:15 p.m. 

Exercise for patients and survivors 

Conference concludes


Multispecialty Clinic, Meet the Speakers 

Meet the Speakers 

Multispecialty brain tumor clinic: 

A team approach, focused on your needs 

The Multispecialty Clinic for Patients and Families at the Center for Neuro- 

Oncology is a weekly clinic that gives patients and their families a single time 

and place to meet with many different specialists from Dana-Farber/Brigham and 

Women’s Cancer Center, including specialists in surgical, medical, and radiation 

oncology. This approach focuses on your needs and ensures carefully coordinated 

treatment and support. 

The clinic is held every Friday, from 7:30 to 11 a.m., on the 8th floor of 

Dana-Farber’s Yawkey Center for Cancer Care. To schedule an appointment, 

call 877-442-3324. 

All speakers are affiliated with Dana- 

Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer 

Center, unless otherwise noted. 

Brian Alexander, MD, MPH, is a 

radiation oncologist specializing in the 

treatment of cancers of the central 

nervous system. He is also an instructor 

of Radiation Oncology at Harvard 

Medical School. He received his 

medical degree from the University of 

Michigan and completed his residency 

as part of the Harvard Radiation 

Oncology Program. 

Rameen Beroukhim, MD, PhD, treats 

patients with primary brain cancers and 

leads a research laboratory investigating 

the mutations that lead to related 

cancers. He completed his medical 

degree and residency at the University 

of California, San Francisco, and is now 

an assistant professor of medicine at 

Harvard Medical School and a neurooncologist 

at Dana-Farber. 

Nancy Campbell, MS, is an exercise 

physiologist in Dana-Farber’s Adult 

Survivorship Program. She began her 

career at the Institute in 2005 and has 

been involved in numerous research 

studies involving cancer survivors 

and exercise. A Certified Cancer 

Exercise Trainer, she also leads fitness 

classes for female cancer patients and 

survivors, and provides no-cost exercise 

consultations to male and female 

patients and survivors. 

Lisa Doherty, APRN, BC, OCN, is a 

nurse practitioner in the Center for 

Neuro-Oncology. Doherty has extensive 

experience caring for adult patients 

with primary brain tumors, including 

patients on clinical trials. Prior to 

Dana-Farber, Doherty worked with 

hematology and oncology patients at 

University of Massachusetts Memorial 

Medical Center and the Lahey Clinic in 

Burlington, Mass. 

Alexandra Golby, MD, is a 

neurosurgeon and director of Imageguided 

Neurosurgery at Dana-Farber/ 

Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center, 

where she focuses on the treatment 

of brain tumors and epilepsy. Her 

expertise is in the treatment of patients 

with lesions in the eloquent cortex and 

the use of functional brain mapping 

techniques, including awake surgery, 

to improve neurologic outcome. She is 

also Principal Investigator of the Golby 

Lab, a surgical brain mapping laboratory 

at Harvard Medical School. She earned 

her bachelor’s degree in physics and 

philosophy from Yale University and 

her medical degree from Stanford 

University School of Medicine.


Meet the Speakers (cont.) 

Stacy Kennedy, MPH, RD, CSO, LDN, 

is a senior clinical nutritionist at Dana- 

Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer 

Center. She specializes in physical activity 

for cancer survivors and is certified 

through the American College of Sports 

Medicine. She is also board certified as a 

Specialist in Oncology Nutrition through 

the American Dietetic Association. She 

conducts educational seminars and 

workshops on nutrition, exercise, weight 

management, and wellness in Boston and 

throughout New England. 

Debra LaFrankie, RN, OCN, is a program 

nurse in the Center for Neuro-Oncology. 

She is a co-leader of the Dana-Farber 

Brain Tumor Support Group, and 

facilitates the weekly multidisciplinary 

brain tumor board conference. She is 

also captain of “Team Neuro,” which 

helps raise brain tumor awareness and 

research funds through the annual Boston 

Marathon ® Jimmy Fund Walk. 

Eudocia Q. Lee, MD, MPH, is a neurooncologist 

and instructor in neurology 

at Harvard Medical School. Her research 

focuses on biomarkers in glioblastomas 

and neurologic complications of cancer. 

Lee received her medical degree from 

Washington University. 

David Reardon, MD, served as the 

associate deputy director at the Preston 

Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at 

Duke University Medical Center before 

joining the Center for Neuro-Oncology 

as clinical director in 2011. His work 

includes using clinical therapeutic agents 

to improve the cure rates in patients with 

brain and spinal tumors. 

Nancy Goldsmith Tharler, LICSW, is the 

full-time ambulatory neuro-oncology 

social worker at Dana-Farber/Brigham and 

Women’s Cancer Center. In 2009, Tharler 

received the National Neuro-Oncology 

Social Worker of the Year Award. 

Halyna Vitagliano, MD, MSci, is 

an attending psychiatrist at Dana- 

Farber in Psychosocial Oncology. She 

provides neuropsychiatric evaluations, 

treatment, and follow-up for patients 

with psychiatric and cognitive issues 

that result from brain cancer and 

hematological malignancies and their 

sequelae. Vitagliano is a graduate of 

Tufts University School of Medicine. 

She completed her psychiatry residency 

and fellowship at Massachusetts 

General Hospital. 

Patrick Wen, MD, is professor of 

neurology at Harvard Medical School, 

director of the Center for Neuro- 

Oncology at Dana-Farber/Brigham and 

Women’s Cancer Center, and director of 

the Division of Cancer Neurology in the 

Department of Neurology at Brigham and 

Women’s Hospital. His research focuses 

on novel treatments for brain tumors, 

including targeted molecular therapies 

and inhibitors of angiogenesis. 

Contac


Notes

Living with Brain Tumors - Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?