Make Sense of the Affordable Care Act
The ongoing implementation of the Affordable Care Act is bringing changes to health care in the United States. And as a result, many brain tumor patients, caregivers and families are left with important questions, particularly regarding the ways in which key provisions (both those that have already taken effect as well as those that have yet to take effect) may affect them. To help address some of those questions, the ABTA has developed an Affordable Care Act FAQ which will be updated with new information as it becomes available. 
 

Pediatric Brain Tumors Topic of February Webinar
Pediatric brain tumors come with their own set of distinct challenges and differences. Join our February webinar, “Multi-disciplinary Approaches for Treating Pediatric Brain Tumors,” on Thursday, February 26 at 2 p.m. CST for a presentation by Mark Kieran, MD, PhD, clinical director of neuro-oncology at Dana-Farber/Children's Hospital Cancer Center. A Q&A session with Dr. Kieran will follow his presentation. Click here to register.

Text-to-Speech Service Allows Easier Access to Online Information
The ABTA’s website is now equipped with text-to-speech service that allows users the option of having web page content read to them. The text-to-speech website function is the newest addition to the ABTA’s offerings for brain tumor patients and caregivers struggling to understand this complex diagnosis and its treatments. Click here to read more about the range of services the ABTA has to offer for patients and caregivers.
 

Honor Your Loved Ones Through the CareCampaign
Join our new CareCampaign and honor or memorialize your loved one while fundraising to support the mission of the ABTA. With your personalized CarePage, you can tell your friends and family why this cause is so important to you. Click here to learn more about the CareCampaign and start your CarePage today.
 

Stay Informed with the ABTA
If you enjoy getting news and updates from the ABTA, please take a minute to update or verify your contact information. Click here to log in to your account.  

Just Two Days Left to Pre-Register for the Chicago Marathon with Team Breakthrough
This Friday, February 15, is the pre-registration deadline for joining Team Breakthrough at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. Due to new Bank of America procedures for 2013, you must first sign up with Team Breakthrough at www.abtateambreakthrough.org by the 15^th, and then you must register yourself for the marathon itself at 12:00 noon (CST) on February 19 with a special code from Team Breakthrough. Don’t miss out on your chance to be part of this world class event. Register today! If you have any questions, please contact Alisha at akassam@abta.org.

Tampa Run & Walk Kicks Off Year of "Breakthrough" Events
The inaugural Breakthrough for Brain Tumors Tampa Run & Walk raised more than $31,000. Thank you so much to all of our participants who joined us this past Saturday, February 9. Register for a Breakthrough for Brain Tumors event near you (including our newly scheduled Dallas, TX event!) to be part of our national program and raise funds to support breakthroughs in labs and in lives. 
 

ABTA Names Outstanding Medical Student Summer Fellow
The ABTA recently named Benjamin Lu, second-year medical student at NYU School of Medicine, as the recipient of the 2012 Lucien Rubenstein Award. The ABTA’s distinguished Scientific Advisory Council deemed Lu to have performed outstanding brain tumor research. To read more about Lu’s research, click here.  

The ABTA is now accepting applications for our 2013 Medical Student Summer Fellowships—$3,000 stipends grants to current medical students wishing to spend a summer conducting brain tumor research with esteemed scientist-mentors. To access the 2013 ABTA Medical Student Summer Fellowship Application Guide, click here.

Novel Therapy Linked to Long-term Survival of Patients with GBM and Recurrent GBM
Researchers in the Czech Republic recently reported survival results from a group of 20 patients with newly diagnosed and recurrent glioblastoma multiforme treated with TTField (tumor-treating fields) therapy. The treatment is based on the principle that low intensity, intermediate frequency electric fields have an anti-mitotic effect, leading to cell death. The article, published online in the World Journal of Surgical Oncology (October 2012), presents case reports of 10 individuals with GBM and 10 with recurrent GBM treated during 2004 and 2005. The article reports that two individuals with GBM and two individuals with recurrent GBM were in good health and no longer receiving treatment more than seven years after initiating TTField treatment. To read the case reports and treatment details, click here.

Arachnoid Cysts in Adults
Arachnoid cysts are a common incidental finding on brain imaging in all age groups. A retrospective study, published in the Journal of Neurosurgery (February 2013), reviewed the medical records of adults who underwent brain MRI over a 12-year interval to identify patients diagnosed with arachnoid cysts. A total of 48,417 patients underwent brain MRI over the study period, and arachnoid cysts were identified in 661 of these individuals. Men had a greater prevalence (1.8%) than women (1.1%). Multiple arachnoid cysts were found in 30 patients. The most common locations were middle fossa (34%), retrocerebellar (33%), and convexity (14%). The article continues to discuss the natural history and follow up of this population. To read the abstract, click here.