Monthly Archives: August 2011

Furthering research through the NIH Pediatric GIST clinic

From June 15 through June 17, 2011, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) hosted the seventh annual Pediatric and wildtype GIST Clinic. Ten patients from across the United States and Canada attended, accompanied by family members or friends. In total, 80 patients have participated in the NIH Pediatric GIST Clinic, 75 of whom have wildtype GIST. Thirty-five percent of patients have pediatric GIST, currently defined as diagnosis before the age of 19.

By |2019-10-11T11:09:43-04:00August 1st, 2011|News, Pediatric GIST|

Trips & transitions: Where our specialists landed

GIST is a tricky disease. It’s important for patients to find the right doctor, one who understands the disease biology, treatment options and individualized treatment techniques like mutational and plasma testing. In most cases, we encourage our members to seek a GIST specialist.

By |2019-10-11T11:13:00-04:00August 1st, 2011|News|

Case Study: challenges of long-term therapy in GIST

For 10 years Gleevec (at 600 mg) had been controlling his GIST, but Bob was struggling with the day-to-day side-effects of Gleevec. Most troubling were the muscle cramps, especially in the arms, that made it difficult to function effectively. Aching in the bones was also a problem; dealing with the side-effects of Gleevec had become a daily battle. Despite being treated at one of the best GIST centers in the country and despite taking supplements, such as calcium, the side-effects continued.

By |2019-10-11T11:14:12-04:00August 1st, 2011|Gleevec, News|

Dutch Group marks 1 year anniversary of D-Day fundraising

Life Raft Group Research Team member, Dr. Brian Rubin and Life Raft Group’s Development Director, Christine Schaumburg, visited Amsterdam in June to recognize the one year anniversary of the launch of Project D-Day with Jeroen Pit and his colleagues who, combined, raised $2.1 Million for the D-Day project in a matter of weeks.

By |2019-10-15T09:45:58-04:00August 1st, 2011|Fundraising, News|

First GIST tumor board convenes for Latin American docs

Alianza GIST, in partnership with the Life Raft Group, The Max Foundation, and Tecnológico de Monterrey hosted an event for Latin American physicians on Sunday June 5th at the American Society of Clinical Oncology conference (ASCO). The meeting drew physicians from many countries as they discussed best practices in Latin America for GIST and convened a Tumor Board with case discussions.

By |2019-10-15T09:49:03-04:00August 1st, 2011|News|

Adjuvant Gleevec, Star of ASCO: What We Learned

Results of the Scandinavian Sarcoma Group (SSG 18) adjuvant imatinib (Gleevec/Glivec) trial in high risk GIST were presented on June 5, during the Plenary Session of the 2011 American Society of Clinical Oncology conference (ASCO). The Plenary or “all members’ session” highlights “abstracts deemed to have the highest merit and greatest impact on oncology research and practice”.

By |2018-10-30T14:04:38-04:00August 1st, 2011|Gleevec, News|
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