Source: UCSF Today
January 17, 2008

UCSF Meningioma Research Laboratory Receives Donation

The UCSF Meningioma Research Laboratory has received a $60,000 donation from Meningioma Mommas, a nonprofit organization committed to finding a cure for meningioma brain tumors.

The organization's founder, Liz Holzemer, presented a check to neurosurgeon Michael McDermott, MD, who holds the Robert and Ruth Halperin Endowed Chair in Meningioma Research, and Anita Lal, PhD, the laboratory principal investigator, on Jan. 8 in the UCSF Rosegay Library and Conference Center in the Department of Neurological Surgery.

"I'm honored to announce that Meningioma Mommas will help sponsor translational research conducted at the Meningioma Research Laboratory," said Holzemer. "There are very few clinicians and scientists studying this disease, so it is our mission to support these important efforts. I hope one day the work UCSF and other centers are doing will help reduce or stop this terrible disease."

A meningioma is a type of tumor that develops from the arachnoid layer of the meninges, the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. The majority of meningioma tumors (90 percent) are benign. However, when benign tumors grow, constricting and affecting the brain, they can cause headaches, seizures, neurologic deficits, disability and can even be life-threatening. Meningiomas vary in their symptoms and appropriate treatment options include surgery, radiosurgery and radiation therapy depending on where they are located. Meningiomas are more common in women than in men and most common in people between the ages of 40 and 70.

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