Researchers make glioblastoma cells visible to attacking immune cells

Strategy involves placing targets on deadly cancer’s cells, potentially making them vulnerable to immunotherapies By: Julia Evangelou Strait Even treated with the most advanced therapies, patients with glioblastoma — an aggressive brain cancer — typically survive less than two years after diagnosis. Efforts to treat this cancer with the latest immunotherapies have been unsuccessful, likely […]

This is(n’t) Cancer: Advances Against Brain Tumors, Benign or Not

After minor blurred vision prompted Ellen to get an eye exam, she was surprised to learn she had a mass in the middle of her brain near the nerve connected to her left eye. A referral to Siteman quickly led to the diagnosis of a brain tumor. Fortunately, it was noncancerous and had a surgical […]

Study increases understanding of why recurrent meningiomas are aggressive

By: Graciela GutierrezArticle originally appeared in Baylor College of Medicine News Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified clinical and genetic predictors of multiply recurrent meningiomas (MRMs), a most aggressive form of this common brain tumor. Published in Science Advances, the study opens new opportunities for […]

Washington gives keynote at 2024 Grubb Lecture

The second annual Robert L. and Julia D. Grubb Lecture took place on October 30, 2024, with Chad Washington, MS, MD, MPHS, giving the keynote address. Washington is a 2014 WashU Medicine neurosurgery alumnus, and currently serves as the Chair and Associate Professor of Neurosurgery at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Speaking to a […]

Complex spinal surgery: collaboration yields life-changing outcomes

By: Stephanie StemmlerArticle originally appeared in Curious At WashU Medicine’s Living Well Center, people scheduled for surgery to correct spinal problems gather to learn how they can play an important role in their own recovery. In this special program designed by WashU Medicine orthopedic spine surgeons and neurosurgeons, attendees work with a nurse practitioner, a nutritionist and therapists […]

Patel Named Surgical Director of Pituitary Center

Neurosurgeon Bhuvic Patel, MD, has been appointed surgical director of the Pituitary Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The center, part of The Brain Tumor Center at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and WashU Medicine, provides multidisciplinary care for patients with tumors and other diseases that affect the pituitary gland and nearby […]

Chen receives $5.4 million NIH Director’s Pioneer Award

The highly competitive award supports high-risk, high-reward projects. Hong Chen, PhD, has received a National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director’s Pioneer Award to use ultrasound to induce a hibernation-like state in mammals — something that was previously considered to be science fiction. The five-year, $5.4 million award is one of eight awarded following a highly […]

The return of the Christopher Davidson Forum

On Sept. 13 and 14, more than 130 brain tumor researchers from around the country gathered at WashU for the 2024 Christopher Davidson Forum (CDF).  The two day event was established in 2016 by Joanne and Charles F. Knight and their family to honor the memory of their late son-in-law, Christopher Davidson, who was diagnosed with […]

The passing of Dr. T.S. Park

Celebrated neurosurgeon pioneered technique that restored movement for children with cerebral palsy Tae Sung (T.S.) Park, MD, a renowned neurosurgeon who pioneered a surgical technique that improved the lives of thousands of children worldwide, died Aug. 31, 2024, while on vacation with his family in Mexico. He was age 77. After a remarkable career devoted […]

Novel immunotherapy improves recovery from spinal cord injury

Mouse study shows engineered immune cell therapy protects damaged neurons. Severe injuries to the spinal cord damage nerve cells, disrupt communication with the brain and rest of the body, and lead to lasting disabilities for millions of people worldwide. The injury itself accounts for only a fraction of the overall damage inflicted on the spinal […]