What is The Ivy Brain Tumour Centre?

In their own words:

"A NEW HOPE FOR BRAIN TUMOR PATIENTS
The Ivy Brain Tumor Center at the Barrow Neurological Institute is a nonprofit translational science initiative established by a $50 million investment from the Ben & Catherine Ivy Foundation in partnership with the Barrow Neurological Foundation. This represents the largest single research grant in the history of brain tumor research, worldwide. Our research program is singularly focused on discovering new therapies for brain tumor patients through a broad portfolio of pharmacodynamic- and pharmacokinetic-driven clinical trials, combining industry-partnered drug development with the nation’s largest operative brain tumor" volume".

"Our multidisciplinary team of brain tumor specialists and scientists are accelerating drug discovery and precision medicine in neuro-oncology in an effort to identify the most promising first-in-class therapies for brain tumor patients"

Stu's sister Laura contacted The Ivy Brain Tumour Centre after reading a story about a British woman who had enrolled in one of their trials involving sonodynamic therapy. You can read about the promising results from this trial here. 

You can read about their other current phase 0 trials here. 

We sent over all of Stu's medical records and were waiting for a consultation, so we didn't progress further with them. There is a charity here in the UK that is lobbying the UK government and fundraising to bring the first Insightec’s magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) technology to the UK. This is the link to more information about it. Hopefully one day the UK will catch up with other countries with personalised cancer care. 

HINDSIGHT
It's another step that we wish we had known at the beginning to be able to weigh up all of the options. We didn't get as far as talking about how much participating in one of their trials costs a UK citizen however we had anticipated using life insurance money to fund it or selling our home. We didn't take travelling to Germany lightly however travelling to America can have its own added complications if something were to go wrong over there the healthcare is very expensive. 

Contact form to see if you are eligible for one of their trials here.

Contact details:

2910 North Third Avenue
Phoenix, Arizona 85013
(602) 406-6489
Email
Contact form
Patient Navigation: (602) 406-8605
General Inquiries: (602) 406-6489

the ivy brain yumour centre, usa