Dr. Snuffy Myers will be the principal speaker at the “Prostate Cancer Symposium” held on Monday September 24th at the Suburban Hospital at 8600 Old Georgetown Road in Bethesda, Maryland. Registration is required. Reception is at 6:30 PM followed by the presentation at 7PM. The Symposium is free as are the snacks that are served during the reception. Get more info from ProstateSymp9-2007.pdf.

The Third Annual African American Prostate Cancer Disparity Summit will be held:
September 27 & 28, 2007 at Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC

Free Prostate Cancer Symposium on October 20, 2007 — The Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas. Speakers are physician-scientists from The Methodist Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine and UT.  Focus is on the roles of XRT, Robotic and Laparoscopic Surgeries; Hormone Management and Alternatives to Hormone Therapy and treatments in the pipeline such as Vaccines and Gene Therapy. Save the Date!

Merv Griffin (July 6, 1925- August 12, 2007), a pioneer in the TV entertainment industry, has died at age 82 of prostate cancer. Merv Griffin, a singer and talk show host, created the TV games Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. Diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1996, he was treated initially with brachytherapy therapy [see correction below].

Jan Manarite from the Prostate Cancer Research Institute Florida Helpline e-mailed us details of an upcoming conference in Los Angeles, CA on Prostate Cancer : Making a Positive Impact on Quality of Life

The 2007 National Conference on Prostate Cancer : Making a Positive Impact on Quality of Life

When: Sept 7th - 9th, 2007
Where: Marriott Hotel, Los Angeles Airport
Who should come: prostate cancer patients, and their family members. Also medical professionals seeking CME credit.

Cost:
$60 per person - before Tuesday, July 24th
$85 per person - after Monday, July 23rd
(CME credit extra)
$100 per person - day of event, onsite

Highlights Include:

• *Live demonstration of color Doppler biopsy
• *Comprehensive coverage of wide range of treatments
• *Presentations on new and developing treatments
• *Understanding Medicare
• *Meet The Speaker Sessions (following presentations)

Speakers Include:

• Mark Scholz, MD
• Stephen Strum, MD
• Charles “Snuffy” Myers, MD
• David Bostwick, MD
• Duke Bahn, MD
• Fred Lee, MD
• Donald Coffey, PhD
• Howard Soule, PhD
• and more…

click here for FULL AGENDA and speaker list - click here to REGISTER -

To receive brochures to share with your friends, support groups, etc., please call Tracy at PCRI’s Los Angeles office – (310) 743-2117

Coming up on this edition, an interview with the Director of the Office of Cancer Survivorship at the National Cancer Institute. We have a report on how urological diseases cost Americans $11 billion each year. And Bill Schmalfeldt shares a final report on his experience as a patient in a clinical trial. But first, Wally Akinso has a report about a blood test that might signal good news for folks suffering from throat cancer.

For those who have the appropriate software downloaded and would prefer to listen to this week’s podcast on your computer, here’s the link:

Date: 6/29/2007 | Time: 00:32:04 | Size: 29.3 MB
This podcast is updated every other Friday.

Charles (Chuck) Maack, a prostate cancer survivor and Program Director, for Wichita, Kansas Chapter Us TOO Intl., Inc., will be attending a meeting in Atlanta this September regarding “IMPaCT” (Innovative Minds in Prostate Cancer Today). Chuck is also spreading the word about the PCRI conference in Los Angeles from September 7-9. Chuck writes:

IMPaCT is a gathering of over 600 research scientists who have received Department of Defense funding for prostate cancer research in the past. It appears this gathering will be to brainstorm innovative ideas for future prostate cancer research.

Washington DC walk & assembly

When: Monday, June 4th

Either – 9:30 am Union Station (Red Line) in front of fountain (Join the walk to assembly).

Or – 10:00 am, Upper Senate Park, adjacent to Russell Senate Office Bldg (Join the assembly). Upper Senate Park is a shaded area with a few park benches.

Purpose:

To display our unified dissatisfaction with recent FDA Provenge ruling, and gain news coverage as the largest D.C. prostate cancer assembly ever held (350 or more). We are raising a voice for prostate cancer once again, and the unmet need for more treatment options for advanced PC patients. We are building on what we accomplished together at the March 29th FDA Provenge review meeting.

We ARE newsworthy! (ABC, NBC, CNBC, Seattle Times, and Wall St Journal so far)

We ARE a powerful voice and force!

We ARE a larger group of voting taxpayers than the government seems to realize.

We WANT better communication and representation!

How can an organization claim to be objective when they’ve totally lost sight of the object? We ARE the object.

Attire: Blue shirt, any type
Blue jeans, jean shorts, or jean skirt (or something comparable).
Those who have a military or law enforcement job, wear your uniform if you can.
Those in the medical field, wear your uniform if you like.
(we will have blue rain ponchos in case of inclement weather for $1 donation)
Wear comfortable shoes.
Bring water.

Signs: Inquire with Jan on content. There are strict regulations for signs, but signmakers are welcome. Again, you must inquire with Jan at (239) 395-0995 or [email protected]

Visual Ideas:
Bring men & women in uniform.
Bring a friend, family member.
We are working on having music.
We are working on trucks (semi’s) with blue ribbon, etc.
Motorcycles canNOT find a place to park, so not a workable idea.

This is being organized by Jan Manarite of PCRI, and Raise A Voice. Jan helped to organize and coordinate the success at the March 29th FDA Provenge review meeting. Our plan is to make this another memorable, meaningful event for men with prostate cancer.Washington DC walk & assembly

The Seventh International Prostate Cancer Congress to be held at The Fairmont Turnberry Isle Resort & Club in Aventura, FL from July 27-29 will include presentations on prostate cancer immunotherapy and vaccines by urologist Paul Schellhammer, Professor of Urology at Eastern Virginia Medical School and consultant to Dendreon, Corp., and oncologist Susan Slovin, a Memorial Sloan- Kettering immunologist who is working on bivalent and multivalent vaccines targeted at different arms of the immune system. Program details:

Raise a Voice, an advocacy group for advanced prostate cancer patients, which is calling for patient access to drugs that have passed through Phase I trials, has written a thank you letter to the FDA Advisory Committee on Dendreon’s sipuleucel-T (Provenge). The letter is signed by 19 prostate cancer advocacy groups including US Too International and National Prostate Cancer Coalition.