Post by Linda51 on Apr 26, 2008 14:09:47 GMT -6
Hi all,
We have just a little bit over 2 1/2 months before we have our 4th Conference. I hope everyone getting excited about this and ready to meet again and learn more about these tumors. We have some great speakers and some very good topics. There will be something for everyone. Some of the speakers have change their topic titles so I thought this might help some of you to see them and maybe if you undecided about whether or not to come this will help you to make that decision.
Friday Morning:
After the host gives the welcome SCTA will be talking about the accomplishments we have made in the last 5 years.
Jennifer Wolff -- Spasticity and the survivor
Bridget J McCarthy, M.D. -- "Descripitive Epidemiology of Spinal Cord Tumors from the CBTRUS"
Friday Afternoon:
Susan Gilkey, M.D. -- Sitting Yoga Workshop
Jennifer Wolff -- Managing Your Child's symptoms (breakout room)
Nancy Carter, ACSW Exploring the Caregiver's Survival Kit
Chrstina Marciniak, M.D. Botulium Toxins (Botox and Myoloboc): How and when to use in managing Spasticity
Saturday Morning:
Scott Klein, M.D. Sexual Dysfunction and management after Spinal Cord Injury
Christine Villoch, M.D. Physiatry & Spinal Pain
Saturday Afternoon:
Richard G. Fessler, M.D. "Resection of spinal cord tumors through minimally invasive spine surgery"
George Jallo, M.D. Symptoms of Spinal tumors, imaging and questions to ask your surgeon.
Adauri Camargo, M.D. "Intraoperative Monitoring: increasing safety and improving outcomes in spinal cord tumor surgery"
Speaker's Bio's
Adauri Bueno de Camargo, M.D.
Adauri Bueno de Camargo is a physician specialized in Intraoperative Neurophysiology, diplomate of American Board of Neuro-Monitoring (ABNM) in 2003. Dr. Camargo has established a tailored intra-operative-monitoting (IOM) program for the Department of Neurological Surgery at Montefiore Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, NY, where he has helped establish higher IOM standards. Dr. Camargo has also being involved in training of MDs, PhDs and technicians. In November, 2007 Dr. Camargo was awarded with the “Humanitarian Children’s Award” by the Children’s Tumor Foundation, for his contribution with IOM at Montefiore Medical Center. Dr. Bueno de Camargo has published numerous papers, and book chapters on intraoperative monitoring, and has been lecturing at several professional meetings both in the US and abroad.
Nancy A. Carter, ACSW
Nancy Carter is the Associate Director at Independent Living Resources, in Durham, North Carolina, where she has been employed for foureen years. Nancy coordinates the life skills programming for youths leaving foster care both in North Carolina and nationally. Her work includes organizing youth conferences, training social workers and foster parents (statewide and nationally), developing community awareness and partnerships, as well as publishing resources on topics related to adolescent independent living. For the last nine years, Nancy has helped develop the North Carolina Foster Youth Advisory Board called SaySo: Strong Able Youth Speaking Out and focuses on empowering youths to create their destiny. She currently serves as the Executive Director of SaySo, Inc.
Nancy’s social work career spans twenty-four years and includes operating an adolescent independent living group home, pediatric social work, foster care, family counseling, and pregnancy support services. Nancy is also the mother of two adolescent boys.
Richard G. Fessler, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Neurosurgery
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
rfessler@nmff.org
Dr. Richard G. Fessler serves as Professor of Neurosurgery at the Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University. Prior to assuming this position he was the John Harper Seeley Professor and Chief of Neurosurgery at the University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics. He previously founded and directed the Institute for Spine Care at the Chicago Institute of Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch (CINN) and was Professor of Neurological Surgery at Rush Medical College in Chicago, after serving as Director of Clinical Services and Education at the University of Florida Brain Institute. Additionally, at the University of Florida, he held the Dunspaugh-Dalton Chair of Brain and Spinal Surgery and served as Professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery.
Dr. Fessler completed his Medical Doctorate with honors, and Surgical and Neurosurgical residencies at the University of Chicago. In addition to surgical training, Dr. Fessler completed a Doctorate of Philosophy in Pharmacology and Physiology, and a Masters of Science in Psychology. Continuing education after earning doctoral degrees, Dr. Fessler held research Fellowships at the University of Chicago Medical Center in Neurological Surgery and Psychiatry. The Chicago Surgical Society honored Dr. Fessler with the Excellence in Surgical Research award.
Dr. Fessler is internationally known for his contributions to endoscopic and microendoscopic surgical developments. He has developed many of the current minimally invasive surgical techniques, including “minimally invasive decompression of lumbar stenosis”, “minimally invasive microendoscopic posterior cervical discectomy”, “minimally invasive decompression of cervical stenosis”, “unilateral transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion, minimally invasive resection of spinal cord tumors, and has contributed to the development of many more. The Kambin Foundation awarded Dr. Fessler their annual research award for his research in the field of minimal invasive spinal surgery. He was also asked to deliver the inaugural “Rhoton lecture” of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons on these revolutionary surgical techniques.
Dr. Fessler is also well known for his pioneering research into human embryonic spinal cord transplantation for the treatment of spinal cord injury. He was co-principal investigator on the first human transplant study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of human embryonic spinal cord transplantation for the treatment of syringomyelia, and is the only physician in the United States to have performed these procedures.
Routinely listed in “Best Doctors of America”, Dr. Fessler is also listed in the Consumer Research Council of America “Guide to America’s Top Surgeons”, and “Who’s Who”. Dr. Fessler is a member of the American Medical Association, Congress of Neurological Surgeons, American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Neurosurgical Society of America, Joint Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves, North American Skull Base Society, Joint Section on Pain, Joint Section on Trauma and Critical Care, American College of Surgeons, Society of Neurological Surgeons, Southern Neurosurgical Society, and the North American Spine Society. He has held leadership positions for several of these professional organizations, and has been a course director or faculty member for several hundred courses sponsored by these groups. For the Federal Government, Dr. Fessler is currently on Advisory Committees for the Food and Drug Administration. In addition to the FDA, Dr. Fessler served on the government committees of the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Head Injury Foundation. At the state-level as well, Dr. Fessler has served on several advisory councils for the state of Florida.
A prolific author, Dr. Fessler has written sixteen books and contributed over 100 book chapters to medical texts. He has published 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals and presented numerous papers at peer-reviewed symposiums. Dr. Fessler lends his expertise to the Editorial Boards of Neurosurgery, The Spine Journal, Journal of Spinal Disorders, Spine Surgery, and Neuro-Orthopaedics, and he is an editorial reviewer for several other professional journals. He is frequently invited for speaking engagements and visiting professorships worldwide.
In addition to all of the above accomplishments, Dr. Fessler is a Medical Specialist and Flight Surgeon for NASA/Space Shuttle, and is currently a student in the McCormick Theological Seminary.
Susan Gilkey, M.D.
Susan Gilkey, M.D. has been a diagnostic radiologist at Cook County Hospital in Chicago , Illinois for over 20 years. She has been interested in eastern philosophy, Buddhism and yoga for at least 40 years. Dr. Gilkey provides yoga/meditation classes for various patient groups at the hospital including stroke support, burn, overweight adolescent, pulmonary rehab, as well as the mental health unit of Cook County Jail. She is the author of “Sitting Yoga”, a guide to practicing yoga from a chair, which is available on-line, with no cost to download, at www.sittingyoga.com. "
George Jallo, M.D.
Doctor George Jallo graduated from the University of Virginia School of Medicine and completed his neurosurgical residency training at NYU-Bellevue Hospital Medical Center. Dr. Jallo received fellowship training in pediatric neurosurgery under Dr. Fred Epstein. He honed his skills for all intradural tumors under Dr. Epstein's tutelage. He recently joined the faculty at Johns Hopkins Hospital.
His clinical interests include tumors (brain, brainstem, spine and skull base), craniofacial diseases, and complex spine disorders in children and young adults. He has developed several new techniques for the delicate removal of brainstem and spinal cord tumor. This has allowed him to remove tumors considered inoperable by others. He lectures frequently about this topic.
Dr. Jallo's clinical research focuses on computer technology and neurosurgery. He is investigating the role of image-guided surgery for intracranial tumors and diseases. His research involves image-guided navigational systems and intraoperative MRI. Dr. Jallo's other clinical interests involve new treatment modalities for diffuse inoperable tumors in children and adults. He is currently developing several models that will allow him to pioneer new and innovative treatments. This laboratory research includes local delivery of target agents, in attempt to inhibit the growth of these diffuse tumors.
Dr. Jallo is the author of many scientific articles and chapters on brain and spinal cord tumors. He sits on several journal editorial boards including Spine Universe, Child's Nervous System, and the Annals of Neurosurgery.
Scott Klein, M.D.
Dr. Klein is a native of Michigan and received his early education in his birthplace of Grand Rapids. He holds a B.S. Degree in Biology from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where he was Phi Kappa and a James B. Angell Scholar. He went on to complete Medical School at the same institution, with honors of Alpha Omega Alpha in 1975. He took his Internship at University of Oregon Health Sciences Center (Portland), a Residency in Surgery at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital (Ann Arbor, MI) and his Residency in Urology at Baylor College of Medicine (Houston, TX). He was Certified by the American Board of Urology in February 1984.
Dr. Klein is a member of the American Medical Association, the American Urological Association (National) and other prominent organizations, and has published extensively in his specialty. He is on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin Medical School (Madison) and the University of Wisconsin (La Crosse). He resides in La Crosse, Wisconsin with his wife Georgia and their children Todd and Tyler
Christina Marciniak, M.D.
I am currently inpatient Medical Director at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. I am a physiatrist (spinal cord injury medicine certified) and an associate professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Northwestern University Feinberg Medical School.
Bridget McCarthy, M.D.
Dr. Bridget McCarthy is a Research Associate Professor in the Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She completed her Ph.D. training in Chronic Disease Epidemiology and her M.S. training in Genetics at the Graduate School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. McCarthy’s research interests focus primarily on molecular and cancer epidemiology, especially in the area of brain tumors. She is the Principal Investigator of a contract with the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States (CBTRUS) to maintain, update, and generate descriptive statistics on all primary brain tumors from population-based regions in the United States and has worked with the Brain Tumor Working Group and other organizations to make expansions and modifications to the standards for the collection of all primary brain tumors by all population-based state tumor registries in the United States. She is also involved in several studies of brain tumors, including a case-control study on neurocarcinogen exposure and DNA repair and metabolizing gene interactions, a case-control meta-analysis on characteristics and risk factors in oligodendrogliomas, and a study recruiting high risk families internationally to identify genes through linkage analysis. Her teaching interests include the integration of genetics into epidemiological studies, particularly in the area of genetic susceptibility, and cancer epidemiology.
Christine Villoch, M.D.
Christine M. Villoch, M.D., is a member of the Chicago Institute of Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch (CINN), and the CINN Institute for Spine Care, Chicago, Illinois. She is trained in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with pain of spinal origin, treating occupational and sports related injuries, joint, nerve and musculoskeletal ailments.
Dr. Villoch is board-certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Pain Medicine. Specializing in Interventional Spine Care, she is skilled in neuromusculo-skeletal rehabilitation. She performs interventional diagnostic testing, such as discography, selective spinal blocks, and electrodiagnostic testing. She is versed in the use of injection therapy, including fluoroscopically guided spinal and peripheral joint injections, and minimally invasive spinal interventions. These interventions include techniques such as radiofrequency neurotomy procedures and intradiscal electrothermal annuloplasty (IDEA/IDET). She also employs a wide range of rehabilitative techniques to reduce the pain and promote the long-term healing of her patients
Dr. Villoch earned her medical degree in 1998 from the University of Miami in Miami, Florida. After receiving her degree, Dr. Villoch held an internship at St. Joseph Hospital in Denver, Colorado and a residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, which is affiliated with the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Following the completion of her residency in 2002, Dr. Villoch continued her specialty training with a fellowship in Interventional Spine and Pain Management at The Center for Pain Management & Rehabilitation Orthopedic & Spine Specialists, PC, in York, Pennsylvania. Dr. Villoch joined CINN in 2003.
Dr. Villoch is an active lecturer and physician educator speaking both locally and nationally on the topics of minimally invasive spinal interventions, injections, and rehabilitative spine care. She is bilingual in Spanish and English. An avid marathon runner and triathlete she has provided medical coverage for the Chicago Marathon and the Mrs. T's Chicago Triathlon. She has also served as a volunteer team physician for various local high schools.
Dr. Villoch is an active member of numerous professional organizations including, the Physiatric Association of Spine, Sports, and Occupational Rehabilitation, the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, the North American Spine Society, and the International Spinal Injection Society.
Jennifer Wolff
Jennifer Wolff is a survivor of a re-occuring intramedullary ependymoma (T7-L2 in 2003 and T9-T10 in 2006 with radiation). She finished her Master’s degree in occupational therapy from the College of St. Catherine’s in St. Paul, MN after her first surgery and is practicing at the Waverly Health Center in Waverly, IA. Her thesis was titled “Occupational Balance” and she has continued her studies focusing on stroke rehabilitation/neuroplasticity and upper extremity conditions.
Jennifer has experienced spasticity: first taking baclofen and zanaflex, then having botox shots and eventually having a baclofen pump inserted. She is wheelchair based and has learned to manage her different abilities to her advantage….teaching others by example. She will be sharing experiences and answering questions regarding herself and how to manage symptoms, both in adults and children.
~Linda
We have just a little bit over 2 1/2 months before we have our 4th Conference. I hope everyone getting excited about this and ready to meet again and learn more about these tumors. We have some great speakers and some very good topics. There will be something for everyone. Some of the speakers have change their topic titles so I thought this might help some of you to see them and maybe if you undecided about whether or not to come this will help you to make that decision.
Friday Morning:
After the host gives the welcome SCTA will be talking about the accomplishments we have made in the last 5 years.
Jennifer Wolff -- Spasticity and the survivor
Bridget J McCarthy, M.D. -- "Descripitive Epidemiology of Spinal Cord Tumors from the CBTRUS"
Friday Afternoon:
Susan Gilkey, M.D. -- Sitting Yoga Workshop
Jennifer Wolff -- Managing Your Child's symptoms (breakout room)
Nancy Carter, ACSW Exploring the Caregiver's Survival Kit
Chrstina Marciniak, M.D. Botulium Toxins (Botox and Myoloboc): How and when to use in managing Spasticity
Saturday Morning:
Scott Klein, M.D. Sexual Dysfunction and management after Spinal Cord Injury
Christine Villoch, M.D. Physiatry & Spinal Pain
Saturday Afternoon:
Richard G. Fessler, M.D. "Resection of spinal cord tumors through minimally invasive spine surgery"
George Jallo, M.D. Symptoms of Spinal tumors, imaging and questions to ask your surgeon.
Adauri Camargo, M.D. "Intraoperative Monitoring: increasing safety and improving outcomes in spinal cord tumor surgery"
Speaker's Bio's
Adauri Bueno de Camargo, M.D.
Adauri Bueno de Camargo is a physician specialized in Intraoperative Neurophysiology, diplomate of American Board of Neuro-Monitoring (ABNM) in 2003. Dr. Camargo has established a tailored intra-operative-monitoting (IOM) program for the Department of Neurological Surgery at Montefiore Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, NY, where he has helped establish higher IOM standards. Dr. Camargo has also being involved in training of MDs, PhDs and technicians. In November, 2007 Dr. Camargo was awarded with the “Humanitarian Children’s Award” by the Children’s Tumor Foundation, for his contribution with IOM at Montefiore Medical Center. Dr. Bueno de Camargo has published numerous papers, and book chapters on intraoperative monitoring, and has been lecturing at several professional meetings both in the US and abroad.
Nancy A. Carter, ACSW
Nancy Carter is the Associate Director at Independent Living Resources, in Durham, North Carolina, where she has been employed for foureen years. Nancy coordinates the life skills programming for youths leaving foster care both in North Carolina and nationally. Her work includes organizing youth conferences, training social workers and foster parents (statewide and nationally), developing community awareness and partnerships, as well as publishing resources on topics related to adolescent independent living. For the last nine years, Nancy has helped develop the North Carolina Foster Youth Advisory Board called SaySo: Strong Able Youth Speaking Out and focuses on empowering youths to create their destiny. She currently serves as the Executive Director of SaySo, Inc.
Nancy’s social work career spans twenty-four years and includes operating an adolescent independent living group home, pediatric social work, foster care, family counseling, and pregnancy support services. Nancy is also the mother of two adolescent boys.
Richard G. Fessler, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Neurosurgery
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
rfessler@nmff.org
Dr. Richard G. Fessler serves as Professor of Neurosurgery at the Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University. Prior to assuming this position he was the John Harper Seeley Professor and Chief of Neurosurgery at the University of Chicago Hospitals and Clinics. He previously founded and directed the Institute for Spine Care at the Chicago Institute of Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch (CINN) and was Professor of Neurological Surgery at Rush Medical College in Chicago, after serving as Director of Clinical Services and Education at the University of Florida Brain Institute. Additionally, at the University of Florida, he held the Dunspaugh-Dalton Chair of Brain and Spinal Surgery and served as Professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery.
Dr. Fessler completed his Medical Doctorate with honors, and Surgical and Neurosurgical residencies at the University of Chicago. In addition to surgical training, Dr. Fessler completed a Doctorate of Philosophy in Pharmacology and Physiology, and a Masters of Science in Psychology. Continuing education after earning doctoral degrees, Dr. Fessler held research Fellowships at the University of Chicago Medical Center in Neurological Surgery and Psychiatry. The Chicago Surgical Society honored Dr. Fessler with the Excellence in Surgical Research award.
Dr. Fessler is internationally known for his contributions to endoscopic and microendoscopic surgical developments. He has developed many of the current minimally invasive surgical techniques, including “minimally invasive decompression of lumbar stenosis”, “minimally invasive microendoscopic posterior cervical discectomy”, “minimally invasive decompression of cervical stenosis”, “unilateral transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion, minimally invasive resection of spinal cord tumors, and has contributed to the development of many more. The Kambin Foundation awarded Dr. Fessler their annual research award for his research in the field of minimal invasive spinal surgery. He was also asked to deliver the inaugural “Rhoton lecture” of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons on these revolutionary surgical techniques.
Dr. Fessler is also well known for his pioneering research into human embryonic spinal cord transplantation for the treatment of spinal cord injury. He was co-principal investigator on the first human transplant study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of human embryonic spinal cord transplantation for the treatment of syringomyelia, and is the only physician in the United States to have performed these procedures.
Routinely listed in “Best Doctors of America”, Dr. Fessler is also listed in the Consumer Research Council of America “Guide to America’s Top Surgeons”, and “Who’s Who”. Dr. Fessler is a member of the American Medical Association, Congress of Neurological Surgeons, American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Neurosurgical Society of America, Joint Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves, North American Skull Base Society, Joint Section on Pain, Joint Section on Trauma and Critical Care, American College of Surgeons, Society of Neurological Surgeons, Southern Neurosurgical Society, and the North American Spine Society. He has held leadership positions for several of these professional organizations, and has been a course director or faculty member for several hundred courses sponsored by these groups. For the Federal Government, Dr. Fessler is currently on Advisory Committees for the Food and Drug Administration. In addition to the FDA, Dr. Fessler served on the government committees of the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Head Injury Foundation. At the state-level as well, Dr. Fessler has served on several advisory councils for the state of Florida.
A prolific author, Dr. Fessler has written sixteen books and contributed over 100 book chapters to medical texts. He has published 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals and presented numerous papers at peer-reviewed symposiums. Dr. Fessler lends his expertise to the Editorial Boards of Neurosurgery, The Spine Journal, Journal of Spinal Disorders, Spine Surgery, and Neuro-Orthopaedics, and he is an editorial reviewer for several other professional journals. He is frequently invited for speaking engagements and visiting professorships worldwide.
In addition to all of the above accomplishments, Dr. Fessler is a Medical Specialist and Flight Surgeon for NASA/Space Shuttle, and is currently a student in the McCormick Theological Seminary.
Susan Gilkey, M.D.
Susan Gilkey, M.D. has been a diagnostic radiologist at Cook County Hospital in Chicago , Illinois for over 20 years. She has been interested in eastern philosophy, Buddhism and yoga for at least 40 years. Dr. Gilkey provides yoga/meditation classes for various patient groups at the hospital including stroke support, burn, overweight adolescent, pulmonary rehab, as well as the mental health unit of Cook County Jail. She is the author of “Sitting Yoga”, a guide to practicing yoga from a chair, which is available on-line, with no cost to download, at www.sittingyoga.com. "
George Jallo, M.D.
Doctor George Jallo graduated from the University of Virginia School of Medicine and completed his neurosurgical residency training at NYU-Bellevue Hospital Medical Center. Dr. Jallo received fellowship training in pediatric neurosurgery under Dr. Fred Epstein. He honed his skills for all intradural tumors under Dr. Epstein's tutelage. He recently joined the faculty at Johns Hopkins Hospital.
His clinical interests include tumors (brain, brainstem, spine and skull base), craniofacial diseases, and complex spine disorders in children and young adults. He has developed several new techniques for the delicate removal of brainstem and spinal cord tumor. This has allowed him to remove tumors considered inoperable by others. He lectures frequently about this topic.
Dr. Jallo's clinical research focuses on computer technology and neurosurgery. He is investigating the role of image-guided surgery for intracranial tumors and diseases. His research involves image-guided navigational systems and intraoperative MRI. Dr. Jallo's other clinical interests involve new treatment modalities for diffuse inoperable tumors in children and adults. He is currently developing several models that will allow him to pioneer new and innovative treatments. This laboratory research includes local delivery of target agents, in attempt to inhibit the growth of these diffuse tumors.
Dr. Jallo is the author of many scientific articles and chapters on brain and spinal cord tumors. He sits on several journal editorial boards including Spine Universe, Child's Nervous System, and the Annals of Neurosurgery.
Scott Klein, M.D.
Dr. Klein is a native of Michigan and received his early education in his birthplace of Grand Rapids. He holds a B.S. Degree in Biology from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where he was Phi Kappa and a James B. Angell Scholar. He went on to complete Medical School at the same institution, with honors of Alpha Omega Alpha in 1975. He took his Internship at University of Oregon Health Sciences Center (Portland), a Residency in Surgery at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital (Ann Arbor, MI) and his Residency in Urology at Baylor College of Medicine (Houston, TX). He was Certified by the American Board of Urology in February 1984.
Dr. Klein is a member of the American Medical Association, the American Urological Association (National) and other prominent organizations, and has published extensively in his specialty. He is on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin Medical School (Madison) and the University of Wisconsin (La Crosse). He resides in La Crosse, Wisconsin with his wife Georgia and their children Todd and Tyler
Christina Marciniak, M.D.
I am currently inpatient Medical Director at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. I am a physiatrist (spinal cord injury medicine certified) and an associate professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Northwestern University Feinberg Medical School.
Bridget McCarthy, M.D.
Dr. Bridget McCarthy is a Research Associate Professor in the Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She completed her Ph.D. training in Chronic Disease Epidemiology and her M.S. training in Genetics at the Graduate School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. McCarthy’s research interests focus primarily on molecular and cancer epidemiology, especially in the area of brain tumors. She is the Principal Investigator of a contract with the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States (CBTRUS) to maintain, update, and generate descriptive statistics on all primary brain tumors from population-based regions in the United States and has worked with the Brain Tumor Working Group and other organizations to make expansions and modifications to the standards for the collection of all primary brain tumors by all population-based state tumor registries in the United States. She is also involved in several studies of brain tumors, including a case-control study on neurocarcinogen exposure and DNA repair and metabolizing gene interactions, a case-control meta-analysis on characteristics and risk factors in oligodendrogliomas, and a study recruiting high risk families internationally to identify genes through linkage analysis. Her teaching interests include the integration of genetics into epidemiological studies, particularly in the area of genetic susceptibility, and cancer epidemiology.
Christine Villoch, M.D.
Christine M. Villoch, M.D., is a member of the Chicago Institute of Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch (CINN), and the CINN Institute for Spine Care, Chicago, Illinois. She is trained in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with pain of spinal origin, treating occupational and sports related injuries, joint, nerve and musculoskeletal ailments.
Dr. Villoch is board-certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Pain Medicine. Specializing in Interventional Spine Care, she is skilled in neuromusculo-skeletal rehabilitation. She performs interventional diagnostic testing, such as discography, selective spinal blocks, and electrodiagnostic testing. She is versed in the use of injection therapy, including fluoroscopically guided spinal and peripheral joint injections, and minimally invasive spinal interventions. These interventions include techniques such as radiofrequency neurotomy procedures and intradiscal electrothermal annuloplasty (IDEA/IDET). She also employs a wide range of rehabilitative techniques to reduce the pain and promote the long-term healing of her patients
Dr. Villoch earned her medical degree in 1998 from the University of Miami in Miami, Florida. After receiving her degree, Dr. Villoch held an internship at St. Joseph Hospital in Denver, Colorado and a residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, which is affiliated with the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Following the completion of her residency in 2002, Dr. Villoch continued her specialty training with a fellowship in Interventional Spine and Pain Management at The Center for Pain Management & Rehabilitation Orthopedic & Spine Specialists, PC, in York, Pennsylvania. Dr. Villoch joined CINN in 2003.
Dr. Villoch is an active lecturer and physician educator speaking both locally and nationally on the topics of minimally invasive spinal interventions, injections, and rehabilitative spine care. She is bilingual in Spanish and English. An avid marathon runner and triathlete she has provided medical coverage for the Chicago Marathon and the Mrs. T's Chicago Triathlon. She has also served as a volunteer team physician for various local high schools.
Dr. Villoch is an active member of numerous professional organizations including, the Physiatric Association of Spine, Sports, and Occupational Rehabilitation, the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, the North American Spine Society, and the International Spinal Injection Society.
Jennifer Wolff
Jennifer Wolff is a survivor of a re-occuring intramedullary ependymoma (T7-L2 in 2003 and T9-T10 in 2006 with radiation). She finished her Master’s degree in occupational therapy from the College of St. Catherine’s in St. Paul, MN after her first surgery and is practicing at the Waverly Health Center in Waverly, IA. Her thesis was titled “Occupational Balance” and she has continued her studies focusing on stroke rehabilitation/neuroplasticity and upper extremity conditions.
Jennifer has experienced spasticity: first taking baclofen and zanaflex, then having botox shots and eventually having a baclofen pump inserted. She is wheelchair based and has learned to manage her different abilities to her advantage….teaching others by example. She will be sharing experiences and answering questions regarding herself and how to manage symptoms, both in adults and children.
~Linda