BrainCare BC

Clearly I have over-extended my invitation, so this is my last post (and with 2012 just around the corner, the next blogger is already on standby, I’m told).

I note that there are a lot of “I,” “me,” “my” and “mine” in my posts, but it certainly was not my intent to make this a self-serving exposé on Brian Toyota.

In fact, the sum total of all that I have described in terms of...

I like being a brain surgeon. I like my work. The operating room is my office, and I get to say things like “STAT” and “scalpel.” Although, I have never once said “STAT” except to imitate some character on M.A.S.H., and I have always called a “scalpel” a “knife” for reasons I don’t really remember.

I know I can under-impress people after they find out what I do. I rarely have...

There is a lot of information available about current treatment strategies for brain cancers, but I’d like to touch on just a few points here.

First of all, until about five years ago, the outcomes for brain cancer were stagnant for decades and there was very little progress. At that time a new drug, called Temozolamide, was used in combination with surgery and radiation which resulted...

In the Neuro-Oncology Group at the BC Cancer Agency, we are driven to use our experience to improve the flow and breadth of care for patients. It is not sufficient to simply watch hundreds, actually thousands, of reactions to those awful words, “you have brain cancer.”  We have used these observations to answer the question: How can we make this situation better?

Cancer is a diagnosis...