Northwestern Medicine surgeons first to treat brain tumor using adaptive hybrid technology

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PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

2-Dec-2014

Contact: Sheila Galloro sgalloro@nmh.org 312-926-0735 Northwestern Memorial Hospital @NMHnews

CHICAGO - It started with numbness on the left side of his face. A few months later, Steve Mores couldn't feel his tongue or chew on the left side of his mouth. TV commercials featuring food or even being in a grocery store made him nauseous. A long time drummer in a popular band, Mores lost 30 pounds and had to find a replacement.

He eventually discovered his issues were caused by a benign, slow growing brain tumor called a vestibular schwannoma. He tried several rounds of radiation to shrink the tumor, but that only made his symptoms worse.

That's when the Aurora resident turned to Northwestern Medicine neurosurgeon Orin Bloch, MD, who determined that because the tumor was growing, surgery was Mores' best option. However because of the tumor's precarious location, the operation to remove the tumor could potentially cause hearing loss or even partial facial paralysis.

However, Northwestern Medicine neurosurgeons are spearheading new adaptive hybrid surgery technology to help patients like Mores. Participating in a phase 1 research study, Mores was one of the first subjects in the United States to have a brain tumor removed using this technology that integrates a radiosurgery plan into surgery. Planning for follow-up radiosurgery during a brain surgery - or in Mores' case using his radiation data during surgery - is intended to help doctors more safely remove the right amount of tumor while more accurately balancing the risks of surgery with the risks of radiosurgery toxicity.

"The goal of every brain tumor surgery is to remove as much of the tumor as possible without harming parts of the brain that control vital things such as speech, hearing or movement," said Andrew Parsa, MD, PhD, the chair of neurological surgery at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and the Michael J. Marchese Professor and chair of the department of neurological surgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. "Studying the results of this type of adaptive hybrid treatment could change the way we treat benign and cancerous growths. Instead of using an MRI after a surgery to find out how much of a tumor is left behind, we may be able to get answers and make adjustments in real time during surgery using adaptive hybrid technology."

Parsa and Bloch performed Mores' surgery on Oct. 16, 2014. To date, the outcome has been positive with no detectable damage to Mores' hearing or facial nerve. He was discharged from the hospital less than a week after his surgery.

Vestibular schwannomas, which are also known as acoustic neuromas, are benign and usually slow growing tumors that develop from the nerves supplying the inner ear. As these tumors grow, they press against the balance and hearing nerves, which can cause loss of hearing, ringing in the ear or loss of balance. If the tumor presses against the facial nerve, facial weakness and even paralysis can occur. Pressure on the nerve controlling sensation to the face and head, called the trigeminal nerve, can cause patients like Mores to experience debilitating pain or numbness, Eventually, vestibular schwannomas may grow so large that they press on the brain stem or cerebellum and become life threatening.

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Northwestern Medicine surgeons first to treat brain tumor using adaptive hybrid technology

Boonton High School students complete pre-med program

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Photo courtesy of Mary Betsy

Boonton High School students graduated from the Rutgers Pre-Med Honor program on Wednesday, Nov. 19. From left are: (first row) Dr. Morgan Pines, Manal Shabob, Nimrah Khurshid, Sarah Sahili, Jordyn Ferrante; (second row) Faiza Kahn, Cyndia Green, Kaia Mobley, Laiba Quereshi; (third row) Iman Hashmi, Martha Asfena, Lee Ann Villegas; and in the fourth row: Will Cartelli, Marshall Maquiling, Hajira Khan, and Noor Tahir.

Fifteen Boonton High School students graduated from the 2014 Pre-Medical Honors Program, sponsored by Rutgers, New Jersey Medical School and The Institute for the Public Understanding of Health and Medicine, on Wednesday, Nov. 19. In its 14th year, the highly successful program is designed to identify and encourage the most qualified high school students to consider careers in medicine by providing them an authentic medical school education experience.

Students are accepted into the competitive program through an application process and enrollment is limited to 200 students across the state.

The BHS students participated in the eight-week program along with students from 34 other New Jersey high schools. They took part in lectures, seminars, and small group discussions that were created by members of the faculty of the New Jersey Medical School and facilitated by medical school students.

The district provided bussing for the BHS students, at no cost, to Rutgers NJMS in Newark each Wednesday for the four-hour sessions which covered topics that included: history of medicine, what you should know as a patient, HIV/AIDS stem cell medicine, principals of orthopedics and knee and ligament injuries, the Ebola crisis, intro to dermatology and skin cancer recognition, genetics, and the mysterious heart. They were also trained in CPR and other life-saving techniques.

The program requires a commitment to the entire eight-week session but the students found the time spent more than worthwhile.

"Participating in the pre-medical honors program was very valuable to me," offered BHS junior Martha Asfeha. "Not only did it provided a stimulating curriculum and expanded my options for future careers, but also educated me on general facts about the medical field. I particularly liked the lectures. It was nice seeing people, who once sat where I was, talk about something they're so passionate about. It's very motivating knowing that they've gone through years upon years of studying and made it so far."

In addition to the lectures and seminars, students gained valuable insight by going on rounds with the medical students at University Hospital in Newark. The program also provided the high school students the unique opportunity to meet and interact with notable faculty from the medical school, including Dr. Jacob Lindenthal, director of the Institute for the Public Understanding of Health and medicine chair, Dr. Robert Barchi, president of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Dr. Brian Storm, chancellor of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, and Dr. George Heinrich, associate dean for Medical School Admission.

"Meeting these renowned doctors was a part of the program I enjoyed most," said junior Noor Tahr. "They all started off where I am today, a high school student trying to figure out my place in the world, what career will suit me best, and how Ill achieve it."

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Boonton High School students complete pre-med program

Round-up: Lawmakers unveil bills for WSU med school, LAUSD shelves contract with Apple

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Lawmakers unveil bills to fund WSU medical school (AP): Two state legislators announced plans Tuesdayto introduce a pair of bills that would create a new Washington State University medical school in Spokane. The proposal from the Spokane lawmakers calls for the state to provide $2.5 million in funding for the project.

L.A. schools chief shelves contract with Apple (Los Angeles Times): One day after the FBI seized documents related toa controversial and costly iPad program at the Los Angeles Unified School District, superintendentRamon C. Cortines announced the district would end its $1.3-billion technology contract with Apple. Cortines said the surprise FBI visit was not the reason for his decision.

Portland high school offers mindfulness class to ease stress, anxiety (AP): Students at Wilson High School in Portland, Ore., gather for 90 minutes three times a week to practice yoga, meditation, breathing techniques and other activities intended to reduce stress and prevent school violence.

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Round-up: Lawmakers unveil bills for WSU med school, LAUSD shelves contract with Apple

Potential for two medical schools in Spokane

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SPOKANE, Wash. -

After Washington State University and the University of Washington dissolved their longstanding partnership in October, many feared the only medical students in Spokane (first and second year students in UW's WWAMI program) would be pulled back to the university's Seattle campus. But two months later, a plan is in motion for an independent WSU medical school and an expansion to UW's Spokane programs.

WSU held a press conference with State Sen. Michael Bumgartner and Rep. Marcus Riccelli to announce legislation seeking $2.5 million in funding for a medical school and a repeal to a 1917 law requiring all public medical training be conducted at UW.

One hundred years ago the legislature in Olympia made a mistake, Sen. Baumgartner said. Medical education is just an absolute must here in Spokane, and this independent medical school is going to do so much to fill that need.

Baumgartner said he's confident the legislation will pass easily and WSU will get the funding they need to get their medical school up and running in 2017.

Meanwhile, Gonzaga announced talks with the University of Washington to potentially partner on medical research and education.

I really think Gonzaga has been focused for a long time on what's best for Spokane, Gonzaga President Thayne McCulloh said. As medical education and research emerged as a priority for Spokane we have been active in supporting that agenda.

The partnership would likely continue UW's WWAMI program, which currently houses 49 first- and second-year students on WSU's Spokane campus. However, those will be the last after WSU and UW agreed to dissolve their partnership in October.

We are committed to the success of the WWAMI program in Spokane, University of Washington President Michael Young said.

President Young stressed that there's no plan to move their current program from Eastern Washington, but Gonzaga's President told KHQ that a partnership would ensure this region doesn't lose ties to UW's successful programs.

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Potential for two medical schools in Spokane

Legislators want 1917 law revised to allow WSU med school expansion – Tue, 02 Dec 2014 PST

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A pair of Spokane lawmakers will propose legislation to establish the states second medical school in Spokane and put it under the control of WashingtonStateUniversity.

Rep. Marcus Riccelli, a Democrat, and Sen. Mike Baumgartner, a Republican, are to unveil legislation this morning that would change a nearly century-old law that limits medical education to the University of Washington. Their proposal also provides $2.5 million for WSU to seek accreditation for the new school on the Riverpoint Campus, which would concentrate on family and ruralmedicinedisciplines.

At this point theres no reduction on anything (for

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A pair of Spokane lawmakers will propose legislation to establish the states second medical school in Spokane and put it under the control of WashingtonStateUniversity.

Rep. Marcus Riccelli, a Democrat, and Sen. Mike Baumgartner, a Republican, are to unveil legislation this morning that would change a nearly century-old law that limits medical education to the University of Washington. Their proposal also provides $2.5 million for WSU to seek accreditation for the new school on the Riverpoint Campus, which would concentrate on family and ruralmedicinedisciplines.

At this point theres no reduction on anything (for UW Medical School), Riccelli said. We want to grow medical education anywaypossible.

They plan to introduce legislation in both chambers that would amend a 1917 law that places medical educationat UW, allowing WSU to have aseparateschool.

This is not a radical idea, Riccelli said. There are plenty of states that have more than onemedicalschool.

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Legislators want 1917 law revised to allow WSU med school expansion - Tue, 02 Dec 2014 PST

UW looking to partner with Gonzaga on Spokane medical school

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SPOKANE, Wash. - Gonzaga University announced its intention to explore a partnership with the University of Washington to operate a physician training program on the Riverpoint campus in Spokane.

We at Gonzaga, together with many other community members, have actively supported expansion of WWAMI medical education and the promise of economic growth stimulated by research in Spokane since the original proposal to bring the four-year medical school to the University District launched, said Gonzaga President Thayne McCulloh in a press release sent out on Monday. Given the reality that expanding medical education has always been considered in view of the opportunities for Spokane and the benefits to Eastern Washington, we feel it is important to get community input on the role and value of a UW-GU partnership

The UW has proposed development of a public-private partnership in the context of the University of Washington School of Medicine's WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho) program a five-state, community-based medical education enterprise that is recognized as the top primary care, family medicine and rural medicine program in the nation.

According to a 2009 report commissioned by Greater Spokane Inc., a four year medical school would have a $1.6 billion economic impact and create more than 9,000 jobs over a 20-year period.

WSU wants to establish its own medical school that would train 120 new doctors per year, while UW wants to expand the existing Spokane program initially to take 80 new students per year and eventually grow to 120. The announcement of Gonzaga's intended partnership came just hours after two Spokane legislators announced plans to back a new Washington State University medical school on the Riverpoint campus.

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UW looking to partner with Gonzaga on Spokane medical school

Cost of applying to graduate school deterring some students

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By Lauren Kent | Published 12/02/14 1:48am Photo by Cassie Schutzer

UNC senior Skylar La Torre-Couch is applying to medical school one medical school, to be exact.

With fees of up to $150 for each application submitted, La Torre-Couch is trying to save money by only applying to the University of Hawaii, where she would receive in-state tuition.

Before current undergraduates can worry about the increasing cost of furthering their education, many students have to worry about finding the money to apply.

Ive heard of stories where students spend thousands of dollars but dont get in anywhere, said La Torre-Couch.

Its easy to spend thousands of dollars to apply to a single school. In addition to application fees, applicants pay for entrance exams, test preparation courses and official transcript orders.

Taking the revamped Medical College Admission Test, MCAT2015, costs $300. And the price tag of Kaplans most popular preparation course is $1,999.

Other professional and graduate programs also have application processes that can cost more than a UNC undergraduates approximated personal expenses for an entire semester.

Registering for the Graduate Management Admission Test for business school costs $250, and its Kaplan prep course runs close to $1,500. The Graduate Record Examinations, a requirement to apply for most other graduate degrees, costs $195.

The process of applying to grad school is a financial burden, and then the kicker is that you might not get into any of the schools, said Swati Rayasam, who graduated from UNC in 2013.

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Cost of applying to graduate school deterring some students

Newport News, Va Real Estate For Sale – 2 Liberty Circle. Ml – Video

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Newport News, Va Real Estate For Sale - 2 Liberty Circle. Ml
I #39;ve Got The Perfect Home For You! It #39;s Lovely: Here is what Trulia.com has to say about the area: Newport News Market Stats: There are 7 one bedroom properties available with an average listing...

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Alex Skolnick’s Planetary Coalition ‘Return Of The Yi People’ at Liberty Science Center – Video

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Alex Skolnick #39;s Planetary Coalition #39;Return Of The Yi People #39; at Liberty Science Center
Alex Skolnick and the Planetary Coalition folks performing #39;Return Of The Yi People #39; in the Jennifer Chalsty Center as part of our Live Music Series.

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