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6th COGNO Annual Scientific Meeting
’Neuro-oncology in the Younger Adult’
Friday 25th - Saturday 26th October 2013
PARKROYAL Darling Harbour, Sydney Australia
INTERNATIONAL SPEAKERS
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 Professor Mitchel S. Berger, MD, FACS, FAANS
Professor and Chairman, Department of Neurological Surgery, UCSF, USA
Mitchel Berger MD, F.A.C.S., F.A.A.N.S. is the Kathleen M.
Plant Distinguished Professor and Chairman of the Department of
Neurological Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco
(UCSF), and is an expert in the fields of neurosurgery and
neuro-oncology. He also serves as Director of UCSF’s Brain Tumor
Research Center and Neurosurgical Research Centers.
After graduating from Harvard University in 1974, Dr. Berger earned
his medical degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine. He
completed a clinical fellowship in neuro-oncology at UCSF, a fellowship
in pediatric neurosurgery at the Hospital for Sick Children of the
University of Toronto, and his neurosurgical residency at UCSF. In 1986,
he became Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery at the University of
Washington School of Medicine, after which he was named Associate
Professor (1990) and Professor (1996).
Dr. Berger has clinical expertise in treating adult and pediatric
brain and spinal cord tumors. He is a pioneer of intraoperative brain
mapping — a technique used to avoid functional areas of the brain during
surgical resection of a tumor. His work has enabled surgeons to
perform more extensive resection of tumor with less chance of producing
sensorimotor or language deficit. ( more...)
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 Professor Jan C. Buckner, MD Professor of Oncology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine
Chair, Department of Oncology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester
Deputy Director for Practice, Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, MN, USA
Jan Buckner MD is Professor of Oncology at Mayo Medical
School, with particular expertise in treatment and clinical research for
patients with brain tumors.
Dr. Buckner has
distinguished himself in academics, research, clinical treatment and
administration. As a neuro-oncologist, Dr. Buckner specializes in the
research and treatment of cancers affecting the brain and nervous
system. A prolific researcher, Dr. Buckner has authored or co-authored
more than 400 articles and abstracts and has given more than 150
scientific lectures and presentations. In 2001, Dr. Buckner received the
Society for Neuro-Oncology Award for Excellence in Clinical Research.
In addition to treating patients, Dr. Buckner currently
holds several positions at Mayo Clinic, including Chair of the
Department of Oncology. For the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Dr. Buckner
has served as the Chair of the North Central Cancer Treatment Group,
Mayo Clinic Cancer Research Consortium, Clinical Research Core Director
of the Brain Tumor Special Project of Research Excellence, member of the
Internal Scientific Advisory Committee and Medical Director of the Mayo
Clinic Cancer Center Systems Management Office. He currently is the
Director of the Cancer Control Program for the Alliance for Clinical
Trials in Oncology. ( more...)
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 Professor Peter C. Burger, MD Professor of Pathology, Neurological Surgery and Oncology, The Johns Hopkins Hospital, USA
Cure For Life Foundation Brain Cancer Research Visiting Academic at the UNSW Lowy Cancer Research Centre, Australia
Dr. Burger was born on the East Coast of the United States,
in New Jersey, but grew up in the Midwest, in Chicago, Ill. Dr. Burger
attended Northwestern University Medical School and graduated in 1966.
Undecided about a specialty, Dr. Burger completed a rotating clinical
internship at the University of Southern California School of Medicine
in Los Angeles. With the war in Vietnam in an active phase, Dr. Burger
spent two years in Texas as an officer in the Medical Corps of the
United States Air Force. Having then finally found his true calling,
pathology, Dr. Burger moved to a four-year combined anatomic
pathology/neuropathology residency/fellowship at Duke University School
of Medicine in North Carolina. Dr. Burger served as a faculty member
there for 20 years, passing through the ranks to Professor, until
leaving in 1993 for a similar position in Baltimore, MD at the Johns
Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Burger enjoys reviewing
in-house cases, a never-ending parade of interesting outside
consultations, and smears/frozen sections during intra-operative
consultations. As a reviewer for the Children’s Oncology Group, an
occasional Australian case crosses his desk. He has published numerous
papers, book chapters and many internationally recognised books
including for the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology Atlas, the World
Health Organisation, Central Nervous System Tumour Classification and a
wide variety Surgical Neuropathology text books.
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 Associate Professor James R. Perry, MD, FRCPC
Head, Division of Neurology
Tony Crolla Chair of Brain Tumour Research
Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Toronto, Sunnybrook Health Science Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Dr. Perry is the Head of the Division of Neurology,
University of Toronto at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and Odette
Cancer Centre – the 6th largest comprehensive cancer centre in North
America. He holds the University of Toronto Crolla Family Chair in Brain
Tumour Research. Dr. Perry received his medical degree from the
University of Toronto, where he also completed his neurology residency, a
clinical fellowship in neurology and medical oncology, and a Clinical
Epidemiology degree. He completed his neuro-oncology fellowship in the
Duke University Neuro-Oncology Program.
Dr. Perry is the founder and elected Chairman of the Canadian Brain Tumour Consortium (www.cbtc.ca)
and an Executive member of the Brain site group of the National Cancer
Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group. He is the co-chair of the
Cancer Care Ontario Neurology disease site group which provides clinical
recommendations and advice to practitioners and to various agencies
regarding new and emerging therapies for brain tumours. He serves as an
Associate Editor of Frontiers in Neuro-Oncology, Eur J Cancer, Current
Oncology, and the Canadian J of Neurological Sciences. He recently
co-edited the new textbook “Cognition and Cancer” and is a frequent
invited lecturer, locally as well as nationally and internationally, and
is active as principal and co-investigator for several clinical trials.
These include the global randomized phase III PRODIGE trial which
tested anticoagulant thromboprophylaxis in newly diagnosed glioblastoma,
the phase II RESCUE trial of continuous dose-dense temozolomide, and
the NCIC/EORTC/TROG phase III randomized trial of radiotherapy with or
without temozolomide chemotherapy in elderly patients with GBM. |
AUSTRALIAN SPEAKERS
Associate Professor Meera Agar
Associate Professor Meera Agar is the Director of Palliative
Care, Braeside Hospital, HammondCare, Sydney. She is also the research
lead for the South West Sydney Palliative Care Clinical Trials unit and
the Clinical trials director, Ingham Institute of Applied Medical
Research. Her research interests include delirium in advanced cancer,
dementia end-of-life care, pharmacological and health service randomised
controlled trials in palliative care and neuro-oncology supportive and
palliative care research. She is the Chair of ImPACCT (Improving
Palliative Care through Clinical Trials), the NSW collaborative trials
group in palliative care.
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 A/Prof Michael Bynevelt
A/Prof Mike Bynevelt is a Consultant Neuroradiologist working
with the Neurological Intervention & Imaging Service of Western
Australia, which is an inter-hospital subspecialty diagnostic and
therapeutic neuro-imaging group. Graduating from New Zealand in Medicine
and Radiology, he undertook fellowship training in diagnostic,
interventional and paediatric neuro-imaging in Bristol and London in the
United Kingdom. His current practice is based at Sir Charles Gairdner
Hospital where he is also Director of the Radiology Department and MRI.
His clinical interests include advanced and functional neuro-imaging
techniques, neuro-oncology, ophthalmological and neuro – paediatric
imaging. He has an appointment at Princess Margaret Hospital for
Children and consults also for Envision Medical Imaging. Mike was
previously the Director of the State-Wide Radiology Training Program, is
a Senior Examiner for the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of
Radiologists and is a Clinical Associate Professor, School of Surgery,
University of Western Australia. He is the recipient of several teaching
awards and has a practice with a strong neuro-oncology emphasis. He is
currently involved in numerous research initiatives, particularly in
brain tumour, paediatric and neurodegenerative disease. He is the
imaging lead in the AGOG collaboration.
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 Dr Lawrence Cher
Dr Lawrence Cher graduated in medicine from the University of
Sydney with Honours, completing his FRACP in 1988. He did his
Neurology training at the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital and the
Austin Hospital. He completed post-graduate Neurology and
Neuro-oncology training at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He
was involved in the care and treatment of patients with brain tumours,
as well as patients with neurologic complications associated with
cancer.
On return to Australia he set up the Neuro-oncology clinic at Austin
Health in close cooperation with the Neurosurgery Unit, and joined the
Epworth Private Hospital. He has been involved in numerous clinical
trials, and is a foundation member of the Society of Neuro-oncology, a
member of the American Academy of Neurology, the Australian and New
Zealand Association of Neurology, the American Society of Clinical
Oncology, and COGNO.
He has been interested in the intersection between Neurology and
Oncology and has published in the fields of glioma, Primary CNS
lymphoma, neuroimaging and paraneoplastic neurologic syndromes.
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Dr Rasha Cosman
Dr
Rasha Cosman graduated from the UNSW and undertook her post graduate
training at St George and Prince of Wales Hospitals in Sydney. She
obtained her Medical Oncology Fellowship in 2012. Rasha is currently
working at the NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre as the Clinical Research
Fellow for COGNO and ALTG.
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 A/Prof Terry Johns
After completing a PhD in 1993 at Monash University,
where he worked on new therapies for the treatment of melanoma, A/Prof
Johns commenced his post-doctoral studies in Prof Claude Bernard's
multiple sclerosis laboratory. During his time there, he developed a new
animal model of multiple sclerosis that remains the gold standard even
today. In 1998, A/Prof Johns moved to the Ludwig Institute for Cancer
Research in Melbourne with Prof Andrew Scott and went on to establish
and head the Oncogenic Signalling Laboratory. The main focus of the
laboratory was the development of antibodies that target receptors
important to the survival and growth of cancer, especially brain cancer.
Of particular note was the discovery of mAb 806, a brain
cancer-specific therapeutic antibody, which subsequently has been
licensed to Abbot. A/Prof Johns returned to Monash University in March
2008, moving the Oncogenic Signalling Laboratory with him. He continues
to develop novel therapeutic antibodies designed to treat brain cancer.
Alongside this work, A/Prof Johns is actively working with international
collaborators and Pharmaceutical partners to move new drugs into
clinical trials for brain cancer.
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 Ms Marina Kastelan
Neuro Oncology Clinical Nurse Coordinator, Sydney Neuro Oncology Group, North Shore Private & Royal North Shore Hospitals.
Marina is the Neuro Oncology Nurse Coordinator within the Northern Sydney LDH, she has been in this role for the past 5 years.
This role encompasses coordination & management of newly
diagnosed brain tumour patients; including education & coordination
through the often difficult & confusing multiple modalities of
ongoing treatment.
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Dr Mustafa Khasraw
Dr. Mustafa Khasraw is a consultant medical oncologist at
Andrew Love Cancer Centre in Geelong and Royal Melbourne Hospital in
Melbourne. He is also a research fellow and a senior clinical lecturer
at Deakin University, School of Medicine. After his medical oncology
training in Sydney he undertook an oncology fellowship in the US at
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre in New York. His fellowship was
both in neuro-oncology and in breast cancer where he participated in
design and conduct of clinical and translational studies.
He is
currently involved in numerous collaborative research projects across
different tumor streams. He focuses on clinical investigation of novel
chemotherapeutic and targeted agents in the treatment of cancer. He is
the author of numerous manuscripts and book chapters and he acts as a
reviewer for a number of scientific journals.
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 Dr Wayne Nicholls
Dr Wayne Nicholls is a Paediatric and Adolescent Oncologist
at the Royal Children's Hospital and the Princess Alexandra Hospital in
Brisbane. He has special interests in Neuro-oncology and Sarcoma. He is
the Chair of the COSA Adolescent and Young Adult Special Interest Group.
This group is involved in AYA research initiatives, guidelines and
protocols and a national AYA network in cooperation with CanTeen in
their capacity as the fund administrators for the national Youth Cancer
Service.
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 Dr Nitya Patanjali
Dr Nitya Patanjali has been a Staff Specialist in Radiation
Oncology at RPA hospital in Sydney since 2009. She graduated with
honours from Sydney University in 2000 and trained at Wollongong , St
George and RPA hospitals. She undertook her Fellowship at the BC Cancer
Agency in Vancouver, Canada in 2008, in the areas of prostate seed
brachytherapy and CNS stereotactic radiosurgery
Her areas of
interest include GU and CNS radiation oncology with sub-specialities
including prostate brachytherapy and stereotactic radiosurgery.
Current
research endeavours include involvement in clinical trials in general
CNS radiation oncology, spine radiosurgery and investigation of
re-irradiation of high grade gliomas with fractionated stereotactic
radiotherapy.
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 Professor Mark Rosenthal
Professor Mark Rosenthal trained as a Medical Oncologist in
Melbourne and Sydney, Australia. He was awarded a Doctorate of
Philosophy for a thesis examining the molecular genetics of colon cancer
conducted at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research. (1992-1996). He
completed post-graduate training at New York University Medical Centre,
New York, USA (1996-98) and was appointed as a Senior Staff Specialist
in the Department of Medical Oncology, Royal Melbourne Hospital in 1998.
In 2006, he was appointed Professor Director of the Department. In
addition, he is Chairman and Chief Medical Officer of Cancer Trials
Australia and is Chairman of the Cooperative Trials Group for
Neuro-Oncology (COGNO). His major interests include: prostate cancer,
neuro-oncology and early phase clinical trials.
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 Dr Gail Ryan
Dr
Gail Ryan is a radiation oncologist at the Peter MacCallum Cancer
Centre in Melbourne. Her particular areas of interest are extranodal
lymphomas, particularly cutaneous, and primary and secondary brain
tumours. She developed the brain stereotactic radiotherapy program at
Peter Mac, and is an experienced clinical triallist, with a longstanding
association with the EORTC Brain Tumour Group. She was the local chair
for the landmark EORTC Phase III study of Concomitant and Adjuvant
Temozolomide for Glioblastoma multiforme, and for the EORTC low-grade
glioma study.
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 A/Prof Janette Vardy
A/Prof Janette Vardy is a medical oncologist working as a
clinician researcher at the Concord Cancer Centre, University of Sydney.
After completing a Clinical Research Fellowship at the Princess
Margaret Hospital and a PhD in Clinical Epidemiology at the University
of Toronto under the supervision of Dr Ian Tannock, she returned to
Australia in 2007 and together with Dr Haryana Dhillon established the
Survivorship Research Group (SuRG). Her main areas of research are
Pscyho-Oncology, Quality of life and Survivorship, with a particular
interest in cognitive function and physical activity in cancer
survivors.
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