BRAIN TUMOUR FACTS

About 1,700 Australians are diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour each year, and a further 2,000 with a benign tumour

Kills more people under the age of 40 than any other cancer

Kills more children in Australia than ANY other disease

Median survival is 15 months

Mortality rates have barely changed in 30 years

Donate to NeuroSurgical Research Now. Use the enclosed form or go online at www.nrf.com.au

Payment via Direct Debit is also available.

RESEARCHER PROFILE

DR MEL TEA

How did you become a researcher in this area? What did you study?

I completed a Bachelor of Laboratory Medicine with Honours at the University of South Australia in 2004, and then went on to work as a researcher and completed a PhD in the field of eye health in premature babies. In 2012, I began my post-doctoral research at to the Centre for Cancer Biology to work on lymphatic development. In 2017, I joined the lab of Prof Stuart Pitson, NRF Chair of Brain Tumour Research, where I am now driving research into GBM.

What fascinates you about brain tumour research and why?

Brain tumours critically impact not only the normal functioning of the body, but also aspects of our behaviour and personality given their location in the brain. They affect people of all ages and walks of life and are the biggest killer of people under 40 years of age, including children than any other cancer. As a researcher, our lab is interested in finding

new ways to improve survival outcomes for patients, using new approaches, technologies and finding the best pre-clinical models to test these new therapies that will translate to better outcomes for patients.

What are you hopes for the future for brain tumour research and why?

The survival rate for brain cancer has barely changed in the last 30 years and for patients with GBM, it remains an incurable disease. Through our research we hope to achieve more effective treatments for brain tumour patients.

What motivates you to get up and go to work every day?

Regularly meeting family members of patients who have been diagnosed and then lost their battle against brain cancer reminds us of how important increasing survival rates for brain cancer is to those affected by this devastating disease

The willingness of patients to donate their tissue for brain tumour research despite the fact that they will not directly benefit from the research

carried out using their tumour tissue reflects their desire to help other patients who will benefit from this research in the future.

The hope of being able to make a difference to the quality of life and increasing the survival times for patients diagnosed with brain tumours.

How will your current research into GBM help those diagnosed in the future and why?

Our research is focused on developing new therapies for GBM. A key part of our research is the use of tissue donated from patients with GBM, making our findings especially relevant for those diagnosed in the future who will benefit from our research.

Our advanced pre-clinical models of GBM also allow us to test these drugs in the best physiologically-relevant models prior to use in clinical trials in patients.

Dr Tea is a Research Associate from the Centre for Cancer Biology (CCB) at University of South Australia (UniSA)/SA Pathology.

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FUNDING LIFESAVING NEUROSURGICAL RESEARCH

NEURONEWSAUTUMN ISSUE 2020 | MAY

@NRFTeamNeuro | @neurosurgicalresearch |

@NeuroSurgR

DID YOU KNOW?

Q&A on Brain Tumour Research

DR MELINDA TEA WAS AWARDED THE 2019 CHRIS ADAMS UNISA GRANT FOR HER RESEARCH INTO THE FATAL BRAIN CANCER, GLIOBLASTOMA (GBM).

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PATIENT STORY

Rosel woke up with pins and needles in her

arm on Friday 9th of June 2006. She thought

she was having a heart attack. That day was

one she would never forget. She ended up

in the Lyell McEwin Hospital where she was

told she needed a CT scan and MRI – the

findings of which turned out to be a brain

tumour the size of an egg.

Rosel went on to have 2 craniotomies, first

for a biopsy (the diagnosis was a grade 2/3

Oligodendroglioma), and another one for a

partial resection of the tumour, which was

located on her left parietal lobe. She went on

to have radiation treatment.

“Our medical team recommended that I

have radiation treatment. When the radio-

oncologist visited us while I was in hospital,

he casually informed us that patients with

my type of tumour could survive between

10-12 years. I cried myself to sleep that night.

My stay in hospital lasted a month.

“A few weeks after being discharged, I

commenced a course of radiation therapy.

“This was administered for 15-20 minutes, 5

times per week over six and a half weeks.

“During the last week of hospital,

unfortunately, the symptoms that presented

that fateful day of diagnosis, reoccurred. After

the course of radiotherapy, I worked with

a neuro-physiotherapist to a point where I

regained some mobility and balance,”

she said.

However, in 2016, the seizures were back,

with Rosel’s right side paralysed and her

speech slurred. She was taken by ambulance

back to the Lyell McEwin where her journey

had first started ten years previously.

Unfortunately there is no diagnosis for

this condition despite testing and Rosel

continues to have seizures of varying degrees

every day.

Rosel says as a result of this experience, she

and husband Andy have developed different

coping strategies.

“We’ve learned to arm ourselves with coping

strategies. For example, we see a neuro-

physiotherapist to help with improving

movement and a psychologist for a mental

health check. We also have at least one rest

day between medical appointments and

outings because I get fatigued easily,”

she said.

Rosel said the experience dramatically

changed not only her life but the lives of her

husband and son, forever.

“When a cancer patient gets a diagnosis, it

becomes a family affair. Our son, Wade, lost

a sense of innocence in terms of having to

deal with the implications of living with brain

cancer.

“Andy lost a potential financial partner in me

because at that time, I was halfway through

a bachelor degree in Early Childhood

Education at UniSA.

“Patients are more than just a statistic - we

have back stories and lived experiences. As

consumers of services we are getting savvy

in seeking information. We are not mere

medical cases, we have a knowledge base

that we can share with to the rest of society.”

To read the rest of Rosel’s story, please visit: www.nrf.com.au/patient-stories

RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP NOW

MEMBERSHIP ENTITLEMENTS:• Invitation and Voting rights at the AGM currently set for

Wednesday 23rd September 2020

• Invitation to Research Presentations at the University of Adelaide set for Wed 23rd September 2020

• NRF Newsletters - 3 distributed a year

• NRF Annual Report

ROSEL STOKESPATIENTS ARE MORE THAN JUST A STATISTIC - WE HAVE BACK STORIES AND LIVED EXPERIENCES. AS CONSUMERS OF SERVICES WE ARE GETTING SAVVY

IN SEEKING INFORMATION.

Membership is valid from 1 April – 31 March each year and is $5 per person, including GST. Become a member to ensure you receive all updates on latest research and invitations to research presentations.

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VISIT US ONLINE

GREY MAY – NEW FACEBOOK PAGE IS LIVE!

We have set up a new Facebook Page to

raise awareness of brain tumour research

and funding – Grey May SA.

This is a partnership between Brain Tumour

Alliance Australia, University of South

Australia & Centre for Cancer Biology, Adult

Brain Cancer Support Association, Adelaide

Brain Tumour Support group and

the NRF.

We hope this page will bring people

together – those who are working towards a

cure and those who are looking for support

when facing a brain tumour diagnosis.

GREY MAY

Support organisations who are here to help

Brain Tumour Alliance Australia (BTAA) Support line - 1800 857 221 (a free call in Australia) 

www.btaa.org.au/

Adelaide Brain Tumour Support Online Facebook support page

Search @Adelaide Brain Tumour Support on Facebook

Adult Brain Cancer Support Association of South Australia (ABCSA) Social support group who meet once a month for coffee in the city

www.facebook.com/AdultBrainCancerSA/

Online Patient Information – Now Available Did you know that the NRF has added a list of support groups and

services, as well as links to resources on our website?

Simply visit: www.nrf.com.au/patient-info

BRAIN TUMOUR RESEARCH UPDATE

To raise awareness of Go

Grey in May - Brain Tumour

Awareness Month – this edition

of NEURO NEWS is focused

on sharing the innovative

research that our brain tumour

researchers are conducting, thanks to funding

from the NRF.

As NRF Chair of Brain Tumour Research, I

can say that the brain tumour research we

are currently funding through your generous

donations will change lives. The hope that

research gives is real and so important when

facing a brain tumour diagnosis.

Unfortunately, much of the death and

disability of tumours is attributable to their

ability to spread and invade the brain leading

to devastating consequences such as brain

swelling. Brain cancer kills more adults under

40 than any other cancer, kills more children

than any other disease, and takes one life

about every seven hours in Australia.

Current NRF funded brain tumour research projects include:

• Inflaming the Brain: Chemotherapy effects

on Cognitive Function in Child Cancer

Survivors

• Developing a comprehensive

glioblastoma brain tumour resource for

testing new and existing brain

tumour therapies

• Arming a patient’s immune system to

treat aggressive brain cancer

• A new approach to deliver drugs to brain

tumours

• Region-specific brain organoids for rapid

and personalised pre-clinical test of

treatments for glioblastoma

We sincerely appreciate your ability to give

at this challenging and turbulent time.

Even though the world is facing a crisis

with coronavirus - Australians are still being

diagnosed with brain tumours every single day.

Please stay safe, and keep yourselves as healthy

as possible.

Professor Stuart M Pitson NRF Chair of Brain Tumour Research

VISIT WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/GREYMAYSA/ AND SHARE THIS WITH YOUR FRIENDS.

BRAIN CANCER KILLS MORE

ADULTS UNDER 40 THAN

ANY OTHER CANCER

Kerry’s husband Richard passed away from a brain tumour. She started fundraising after he passed away as a way of remembering him, honouring his memory, and to make a difference for those people who will also receive a brain tumour diagnosis in the future.

Kerry says that Richard left an impact on everyone he met – he was her soul-mate and best friend since she was 17 years old.

“Richard was a good, kind and caring man, he never ever had anything bad to say about anybody. Thinking about Richard, I put a message out to our friends and asked them to describe Richard in one or two words.

“Loyal, loved, laidback, respectful, caring, fun, mischievous and extraordinary came back the replies. He was a gentleman. He was my best friend since I was 17. He was my soul-mate - the love of my life. During his illness he was the bravest person I have ever met, he never complained, he never gave up and he

never changed. The tumour in his brain never changed the person he was and always had been,” Kerry says.

So, why did Kerry decide to fundraise for the NRF?

“I started fundraising for the NRF after Richard passed away. I heard about the foundation after ringing Richard’s neurosurgeon Dr. Marguerite Harding and asking her which organisation she recommended we support at the funeral.

“When Richard was diagnosed we were lucky enough that he was placed on a trial based in the USA. I have no doubt that this trial medication gave Richard a longer life and a better quality of life. We had two wonderful years together, taking holidays spending all our time together and two days a week looking after our first grandchild Elsie who was just two weeks old at diagnosis.

Fundraising in memory of Richard gives Kerry a real feeling that he is missed and remembered.

“Having my friends and family run or walk and donate to the NRF under the Running for Richard banner warms my heart.

“It makes me realise he’s remembered. I know he is, but this is proof. Shoulder to shoulder, plantar fasciitis to dickie knee we stand at the start line (thinking who’s stupid idea is this?) then exhausted, tired and sore we cross over the finish line but every painful step of the 12 km is worth it,” Kerry says.

Kerry said that anyone who is interested in taking part in the upcoming City to Bay (and DIY event) as part of NRF Team Neuro, should do so. The NRF funds research into a variety of neurosurgical and neurological conditions.

RUNNING FOR RICHARD

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FUNDRAISER PROFILE

KERRY BUTTERY

FUNDRAISE FOR THE NRF

START TRAINING NOW

Join NRF Team Neuro raising money for lifesaving neurosurgical research in September 2020.

Go to WWW.NRF.COM.AU to create your fundraising page, start training and fundraising! Thank you!

The Westpac City-Bay Fun Run presented

by Sunday Mail is still over 20 weeks away at

this stage it is our hope that the event can

proceed as planned on Sunday 20 Sept 2020.

We will continue to listen to the advice

provided by the Government in relation to

COVID-19 and if we need to postpone the

event, we will advise all participants as early

as possible. The wellbeing of our participants

and supporters is paramount.

However, as a backup plan, we have set up an

additional DIY event. This means that you can

complete the run/walk on your own terms.

You can run or walk from home, at your local

park, beach or hopefully to the Bay on 20th

Sept. Nothing is going to stop our NRF Team

Neuro Heroes! Thank you.

HALF MARATHON / 12KM / 6KM / 3KM WALK OR RUN.

STEP 1 - Start Training

STEP 2 - Create a fundraising Page

STEP 3 - Enter City to Bay

NRF TEAM NEURO HERO: Raise $500 your entry fee is waived, Free NRF T-shirt and NRF

brunch is also included.

NRF TEAM NEURO STAR: Raise $100 Free NRF T-shirt and NRF brunch will be provided,

but the entry fee still applies.

NRF TEAM NEURO MEMBER: Buy a NRF T-shirt $50 become NRF brunch included,

but the entry fee still applies.