The August meeting

Wow! What a good time. More people showed up than were expected. That's always a more welcome outcome than less people. Burgers and hot dogs were provided, and others ended up bringing many side dishes. There was good conversation all around, but the highlight for me was playing bags (cornhole) and Frisbee when Ben got his basketball chair out of his car. Thanks to all who attended. I'm looking forward to seeing you on September 5th, just three weeks before the Spinal Cord Injury Walk 2010.

Here are a few picture from the August cookout meeting...

August Meeting and more...

August is almost here and we hare having this month's meeting on Sunday, August 1st at my house Cookout Style.

I will supply the hot dogs and hamburgers, please feel free to bring a dish and tasty beverage of your choice. It promises to be a good time (weather permitting).

Please RSVP, so we know how many to expect.

Sunday, August 1st, 2010

Joe's House
1pm-?
1052 Joliet Rd
Valparaiso, IN 46383

Park across the street at McDaniels. Hope to see you there.

A few dates to save...

Spinal Cord Injury Walk - Sunday, September 26, 2010

Working 2 Walk, Science Symposium, Phoenix, AZ - November 11th -13th, 2010
(We are working on a possible fund raiser that would include a Grand Canyon hike immediately following Working 2 Walk this fall, please let me know if you are interested in attending one or both.)


Joe White
Northwest Indiana Spinal Cord Injury Group
219-531-0055
nwiscig.blogspot.com

July Meeting and more...

Hello all,

July is upon us and we hare having this month's meeting on Sunday, July 11th as not to compete with everyone's 4th of July Holiday plans this weekend.

Please RSVP, so we know how many to expect.

Sunday, July 11th, 2010

Gelsosomo's Pizzeria
1pm-?
2605 Laporte Avenue
Valparaiso, IN 46383

Hope to see you there.

A few dates to save...

Spinal Cord Injury Walk, Valparaiso, IN - Sunday, September 26, 2010

Working 2 Walk, Science Symposium, Phoenix, AZ - November 11th -13th, 2010
(We are working on a possible fund raiser that would include a Grand Canyon hike immediately following Working 2 Walk this fall, please let me know if you are interested in attending one or both.)


Joe White
Northwest Indiana Spinal Cord Injury Group
219-531-0055
nwiscig.blogspot.com

May Meeting and More

Hello all,

We will be meeting again on Saturday, March 6. Please email an RSVP and come on out for some free pizza and good company.

Gelsosomo's Pizzeria

1pm-?
2605 Laporte Avenue
Valparaiso, IN 46383
map | driving directions


Hope to see you there.

May's meeting will be Sunday, May 2nd... location TBA.

The following information was sent to me regarding current Spinal Cord Injury Research. Contact nwiscig@gmail for flyer attachments that can be printed as well.


----------------------------------------------------------

This is a SCI science summary prepared by Chris Connolly, Dennis Connolly, and Jon O'Connor.

Please see the attached SCI research information which updates the progress of the best researchers and independant publicly-held companies.

#1: CDRF history of spinal cord research (then & now). See ThenAndNow_newsletter1.pdf

#2: Reeve Irvine Center of primate research with Dr. Zhigang. This published and peer-reviewed nerve regeneration study is the first of its kind. The fact this is being done in a primate model is a big step from working with rats since the primate nervous system is complex and similar to ours. See ReeveIrvinePublication_newsletter1.pdf

#3: Dr. Tuszynski of UCSD who is working with chronically injured primates utilizing a combination treatment of bone marrow stem cell and growth-promoting proteins. See Tuszynski_newsletter1.pdf and Sci Res&Bioeng_newsletter1.pdf

#4: Dr. Karimi
Dr. Karimiof Toronto Canada is working on a combinational strategy for neural repair after chronic SCI. See Karimi_newsletter1.pdf

#5: Dr. Wise Young

Dr. Young is currently conducting clinical trials in China investigating the efficacy of umbilical cord blood transplants in the treatment of spinal cord injury.

Dr. Young has also been working with other leading neurosurgeons and directors of rehabilitation from across the US as well as two US companies to develop protocols for US-based human clinical trials. Preparations are being made for US Phase II trials to be initiated which will be the first human clinical trials for people with chronic injuries. These trials will help to asses the safety, feasibility and efficacy.

#6: Dr. Stephen Davies

Dr. Davies has been researching intensely for the last year plus and is currently peer-reviewing some new findings before making them public.

Dr. Davies' research focuses specifically on "1). Overcoming the effects of axon growth inhibitors found at sites of injury and throughout the environment of the injured adult central nervous system, 2) Development of glial restricted precursor derived astrocyte (GDA) technologies to generate specific types of astrocyte glia that are suitable for repairing the injured or diseased spinal cord and brain."

#7 Dr. Kerr

Dr. Kerr is currently working at Biogen, which is in Cambridge. He is also at Harvard. He has recently left John Hopkins.

Publicly held companies to keep an eye on include:

#1: Geron - out of Irvine, CA; this company has a scheduled Phase 1 human trial for the third quarter of 2010 utilizing stem cells. Hopefully this will move forward; the FDA cancelled their last scheduled trial.

www.geron.com

#2: Acorda Therapeutics - Acorda is a company based out of New York. Acorda focuses on SCI and MS predominantly. While they have some commercial stage therapies currently available for MS they are in the R&D and pre-clinical stage with a couple of therapies targeted at SCI.

www.acorda.com

#3: In Vivo Therapeutics; this company is based out of Boston and is currently petitioning the FDA for an acute human SCI trial for late 2010 or early 2011. Keep an eye on this one, very strong team.

www.Invivotherapeutics.com

	Plan to join us in Phoenix for the 5th Annual Working 2 Walk Science & Advocacy Symposium, November 11-13, 2010. Featuring the latest research news from our leading scientists, hands-on advocacy workshops, and community networking opportunities, W2W is a unique event that you won't want to miss. After 3 years in Washington, DC, and our first regional event last year in Chicago, this is our first visit to the West Coast. We are excited to meet a new group of advocates and share the Working 2 Walk experience. In the words of a previous attendee, "Thank you so much for the opportunity to attend "Working 2 Walk. I enjoyed seeing the new research, networking with attendees, and speaking one on one with lead scientists. The experience was invaluable."

Our venue for 2010

is the Phoenix Airport Marriott, and our co-host is The Craig H. Neilsen Foundation. The Foundation and Unite 2 Fight Paralysis share a common mission to find a cure for spinal cord injury, and we are proud to join as partners in presenting Working 2 Walk 2010.


This will be an exciting year in the world of paralysis research. Several promising therapies should move to human clinical trials while laboratory breakthroughs continue around the world. We will be sharing the very latest and most accurate reports in Phoenix. For more information and event details as they become available, visit our Working 2 Walk web page.

Over the next few weeks, U2FP
will be upgrading our website to improve the visitor experience. Navigation, communications, event registration, and payment processing will all be enhanced, and we hope you enjoy the changes. The transition should be seamless for viewers, but please forgive any unexpected down time that might occur.

Working 2 Walk 2010

Plan to join us in Phoenix for the 5th Annual Working 2 Walk Science & Advocacy Symposium, November 11-13, 2010. Featuring the latest research news from our leading scientists, hands-on advocacy workshops, and community networking opportunities, W2W is a unique event that you won't want to miss. After 3 years in Washington, DC, and our first regional event last year in Chicago, this is our first visit to the West Coast. We are excited to meet a new group of advocates and share the Working 2 Walk experience. In the words of a previous attendee, "Thank you so much for the opportunity to attend "Working 2 Walk. I enjoyed seeing the new research, networking with attendees, and speaking one on one with lead scientists. The experience was invaluable." Our venue for 2010is the Phoenix Airport Marriott, and our co-host is The Craig H. Neilsen Foundation. The Foundation and Unite 2 Fight Paralysis share a common mission to find a cure for spinal cord injury, and we are proud to join as partners in presenting Working 2 Walk 2010. This will be an exciting year in the world of paralysis research. Several promising therapies should move to human clinical trials while laboratory breakthroughs continue around the world. We will be sharing the very latest and most accurate reports in Phoenix. For more information and event details as they become available, visit our Working 2 Walk web page. Over the next few weeks we will be upgrading our website to improve the visitor experience. Navigation, communications, event registration, and payment processing will all be enhanced, and we hope you enjoy the changes. The transition should be seamless for viewers, but please forgive any unexpected down time that might occur.

March Meeting and more...

Hello all,

We will be meeting again on Saturday, March 6. Please email an RSVP and come on out for some free pizza and good company.

Gelsosomo's Pizzeria

1pm-?
2605 Laporte Avenue
Valparaiso, IN 46383
map | driving directions


Hope to see you there.

• If you're involved in any SCI related sports or hobbies, we'd like to hear about it.

• If you have a job or go to school, we'd like to hear more about that too.

• Please take the time to help us update our files by emailing the completed the questionnaire below?

___________________________________________


It's that time of year again. I am in the process of finding and updating contact information, and I thought I would throw in a little survey as well. Please reply with the missing information as soon as possible.

Name:

Address:

Phone:

Alternative email:

Your affiliation with SCIs or the NWI SCI Group:

Injury Level:

Injury Date:

Injury Cause:

Family members:

Do you have a degree? If so, in what/Graduation date?

Do you work? If so, where/job description/how long?

What are some of your hobbies or interests?

Do you or have you participated in any SCI adaptive sports or activities? If so, what/where?

Do you or have you participated in any rehab programs after your acute rehab hospital stay? If so, where/when?

Do you or have you attended any NWI SCI Group meetings? If so, what was/is your impression?

Do you or have you attended a NWI SCI Walk? If so, what was/is your impression?




Thank you for participating in this contact info update and survey. Please remember to contact us with any interesting, fun, educational, or exciting personal or spinal cord injury related news so we can pass it on to the rest of the group. We, as people with spinal cord injuries, are a rather sizable hidden minority in the local community and in the country. The more resources and networking connections we have, the better equipped we are to deal with all that life has in store for us. Please remember to check out www.nwiscig.blogspot.com for more information about the group and activities of the group.


Thank you for your time and consideration,


Joe White
Northwest Indiana Spinal Cord Injury Group
219-531-0055
nwiscig.blogspot.com