Brain Tumor Funders' Collaborative

 Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada also partners with the Brain Tumor Funders' Collaborative to extend the impact of reserach dollars. This organization is made up of seven other non-profit, philanthropic and advocacy organizations from the United States.These organizations are:

• American Brain Tumor Association (ABTA)
• Ben and Catherine Ivy Foundation
• Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada
• Children’s Brain Tumor Foundation (CBTF)
• Goldhirsh Foundation
• James S. McDonnell Foundation
• National Brain Tumor Society (NBTS)
• Sontag Foundation

In January, 2010, the Brain Tumor Funders’ Collaborative (BTFC) announced the award of 11 one-year feasibility grants of $100,000 each to teams of researchers and clinicians developing the types of tools needed to translate scientific discoveries into effective new treatments for brain cancer patients. This is BTFC’s second joint initiative for brain tumor research and is intended to accelerate the testing of different kinds of brain tumor response markers – reliable, easily monitored biological signals that can reveal if and how a tumor is responding to therapies.

The eleven projects granted funding in 2010 were:

Urinary Biomarkers for Non-invasive Assessment of Therapeutic Efficacy in Glioma
Children's Hospital Boston
Investigator: Edward R. Smith

Development of Protein Arrays for the Detection of Biomarkers in the CSF of Brain Tumor Patients
Emory University School of Medicine
Investigator: Erwin G. Van Meir

Amide Proton Transfer MR Imaging to Assess Tumor Response in Patients with Gliomas
Johns Hopkins University
Investigator: Jaishri O. Blakeley

Circulating Tumor DNA as a Dynamic Biomarker in Malignant Gliomas
Johns Hopkins University
Investigator: Luis A. Diaz

Non-invasive Assessment of Glutamate in Glioblastoma Multiforme: Effect of Treatment
Johns Hopkins University
Investigator: Alena Hoska

Exosome Analysis: A Non-Invasive Approach to Monitor Treatment Responses in Glioma Patients
Massachusetts General Hospital
Investigator: Bob S. Carter

Molecular Determinants of [18F]FACBC-PET Imaging in Brain Tumors
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
Investigator: Andrew B. Lassman

Combining Genomics with Physiologic Imaging Biomarkers to Predict and Follow Treatment Response in Glioma
University of California (David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA)
Investigator: Whitney B. Pope

A combined molecular and clinical predictor of progression vs. pseudoprogression in newly diagnosed GBM
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Investigator: Kenneth D. Aldape

Patient-specific Metrics of Treatment Response
University of Washington
Investigator: Kristin R. Swanson

Monitoring Response to Therapy in Malignant Glioma Patients Using Blood-Based Epigenomic and Proteomic Biomarkers
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Investigator: Kyle D. Weaver
 

In 2006, three, $2 million, multi-year grants projects were selected for funding. They met the goal to promote collaborative, innovative and novel research approaches for pre-clinical systems to accelerate more effective outcomes for patients with gliomas.

Tumor Stem Cell-Based Drug Discovery for Adult and Pediatric Glioma
Kennedy- Krieger Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland
Investigator: Dr. John Laterra

Molecularly Guided Clinical Trials for Glioma
David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Ivestigator: Dr. Paul Mischel

Identifying and Overcoming Resistance Mechanisms in Glioblastomas: A Joint EORTC-RTOG Effort
American College of Radiology/Radiation Therapy Oncology Group
Investigator: Dr. Minesh Mehta