Promising Early Results for Rare Childhood Brain Cancer Drug

This is an excerpt from an article originally published by attorneyatlaw.com on April 24, 2009:

"It’s still early in the process, but researchers say a new drug being developed appears to dramatically slow the growth of a rare and deadly form of childhood brain cancer.

The drug, called 3-BrOP, is being developed by scientists at the Children’s Cancer Hospital at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. In testing using laboratory mice, the drug was found to reduce the growth of the cancer, neuroblastoma, by as much as 75 percent.

In the study, human neuroblastoma cells were transplanted into mice and injected with 3-BrOP, a glycolysis inhibitor that starves cancer cells of energy by stopping the flow of glucose, which is the main energy source for the cells, researchers said.

'We found that neuroblastoma cells, unlike healthy cells, are highly dependent on glycolysis for energy instead of more efficient means of energy production,” the research team said in a statement. “Glycolysis is a process that breaks down sugar for energy, so by blocking that process with 3-BrOP, we are able to keep the tumors from producing energy, and this disrupts their ability to grow.'"

For the full article go to Promising Early Results for Rare Childhood Brain Cancer Drug.

Agony, Hope & Resolve

This is an excerpt from an article written by Susan Axelrod, originally published in Newsweek:

"Twenty-three mind-numbing medications. Brain stimulation. Special diets. Countless hospitalizations, emergency-room visits and procedures. Drug-induced comas to temporarily halt relentless, brain-damaging and life-threatening clusters of seizures. This describes the first 18 years of my daughter's life. One night, when she was just 7 months old, I put Lauren to sleep in her crib. The next morning I found her blue and limp—the result, I was soon to discover, of a night filled with seizures. Seizures that defied explanation, resisted treatments and have defined her life ever since. All I wanted, from that day on, was to be able to make the seizures stop. But that goal remained elusive. She could have 25 or more seizures a day. She would wake up after a seizure just long enough to feel the next one coming on and scream out in terror, begging me, "Mommy … NO … make it stop…" I never could. As all parents know, your child looks to you to explain the world, help put things in order and to make things better. There is nothing worse than seeing that look of terror in your child's eyes when you are completely helpless to make things better. When she was 15, Lauren underwent a seven-hour neurosurgical procedure, which, at the time, was our last hope. Surgeons bored holes in her skull and implanted electrodes directly onto the surface of her brain in an attempt to pinpoint the area responsible for the seizures, in hopes of being able to surgically remove it.

When we learned that we had subjected her to this horrific procedure only to come up empty-handed once again, it was the lowest moment of my life. Any remaining hope that we could ever stop the torrents of seizures and the brain damage they were causing dissolved. After 24 hours, my tears gave way to a new resolve. It was no longer OK to sit back and accept that answers could not be found."

For the full article please got to Agony, Hope & Resolve

Child abuse is up as parents taking out financial stress on kids

This is an excerpt from an article written by Jasmine Jafferali and published on April 18, 2009 in the Chicago Family Health Examiner:

"Experts fear this recession is taking a toll on families reporting a rise in domestic and child abuse. The Illinois department of child and family services reported a 5.8 percent rise in child abuse cases in in 2008. In the Chicago area alone, child abuse cases rose more than 9 percent last year. Child abuse is classified in three different categories, physical, psychological and sexual.

Physical abuse is physical aggression directed at a child by an adult. It can involve striking, burning, choking or shaking a child, and the distinction between discipline and abuse is often poorly defined. The transmission of toxins to a child through their mother (such as with fetal alcohol syndrome) can also be considered physical abuse in some jurisdictions.

Child sexual abuse is any sexual act between an adult and a child, including penetration, fondling, exposure to adult sexuality and violations of privacy.

Psychological abuse, also known as emotional abuse, which can involve belittling or shaming a child, and the withholding of affection.

The National Association of Social Workers has issued statements that “even the mildest forms of physical punishment lower children's self-esteem, constitute acts of violence, and teach children that physical force is an acceptable way to resolve conflicts.” In 2008, the Center for Disease Control published a recent study that found that 1 in 50 infants in the United States are victims of nonfatal neglect or abuse. There has been a rise in shaken-baby syndrome which bears distinct signs: brain hemorrhaging, retinal hemorrhaging and damage to the spine, neck or ribs."

Please go to Child abuse is up as parents taking out financial stress on kids for the full article.

Barack Obama, statement made on World Autism Day 2009

This is an excerpt from President Obama's press release delivered on April 2, 2009; United Nations - World Autism Day.

" Autism Spectrum Disorders have quietly become some of the most serious public health issues in the United States and the world today. According to the Centers for Disease Control, autism affects 1 in 150 children; 1 in 94 boys, in the United States. It is estimated that tens of millions have autism world wide.

Autism not only jeopardizes the future of our children, but also has a devastating impact on all levels of government here at home and around the world. Today, autism costs our nation alone $90 billion dollars each year. In current dollars, the cost of simply caring for each person with autism will be over $3 million -- a devastating burden for virtually every family who is affected by this disorder.

While the statistics are staggering, these numbers are compounded with autism's impact on our families and communities. The divorce rate of parents of children with autism is far above the national average, as is the bankruptcy rate. Autism taxes our families in many ways - not just financially, but emotionally as well.

As an Illinois state senator, I sponsored comprehensive legislation that became law to create an Autism Spectrum Disorders diagnosis education program. The goal of that project is to offer educational opportunities at all levels of care, including physicians, early intervention (which we know is crucial in helping give our children a chance), psychologists, teachers, day care providers, parents, respite workers, and speech and language therapists. I have personally worked side-by-side with Illinois families affected by autism to support efforts to build the Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research."

Full statement available at barackobama.com.

Progress is slow in the war against autism

Originally published by CNN. For full article follow the link below.

William Searing is an Eagle Scout who loves hiking, adventure, art and sports. At age 19, he's in an education program that bridges the gap from high school to getting a job. Wil has autism.

The neurological disorder was diagnosed when he was 18 months old.

Mia Newman's epilepsy and autism weren't diagnosed until she was almost 3 years old. Now 9, she and her family still face many challenges in coping with her conditions.

It's been a year since the first U.N.-declared World Autism Awareness Day. In those past 365 days, nobody has discovered the cause of autism, which the most recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggest affects one in 150 children. Nor has a cure been found. However, new research and major court decisions have emerged to explain further what may contribute to the developmental disabilities of the brain known as "autism spectrum disorders" or ASDs.

One thing that has been known for a while is that there is not one type of autism, but rather several types under the autism umbrella, including Asperger's syndrome, classic autism and pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS). More and more doctors and researchers are referring to autism as autisms (plural) because each child's case is different, as are the causes, helpful therapies and potential future cures.

For the full article go to CNN, Progress is slow in the war against autism.