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Ren Michael Pedersen OAM (born "Rene" in Atherton, North Queensland, Australia) is an advocate for children's brain cancer research.
After the death of his daughter Amy from a brain stem cancer known as Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), Pedersen founded the independent Australian arm of The Cure Starts Now. [1]
Pedersen was awarded an Order of Australia Medal in the 2022 Australia Day Honours for service to the community. [2]
The Cure Starts Now was founded in 2007 by Cincinnati's Keith and Brooke Desserich with Pedersen the former director of the independent Australian branch of the organization. In 2009, the organization became an official DGR Registered Australian charity (Incorporation #IA37656) [3] and then in 2019 a new charity name The Cure Starts Now Australia Limited was registered as a charity. [4]
In 2013 the organisation was awarded a $109,000 Monash Institute of Medical Research Grant to fund "Targeted Drug and Stem Cell Therapy" trials [5] and was featured at the International Symposium on Pediatric Neuro-Oncology in Singapore in 2014. [6]
Pedersen sat on the Cure Starts Now's Strategic Advisory Council, which has overseen the approval of approximately $25M AUD worth of new BT/DIPG research projects in the past decade. [7] He remains on the board of the organisation he founded. [8]
To date approximately $5 million has been directly raised by The Cure Starts Now (Australia) [9] for DIPG brain tumour research, since its 2009 inception [10]
Significant fundraising activities include:
Pedersen is a certified helicopter pilot, attaining his Commercial Pilot Licence at the age of 52. [25]
James Cook University (JCU) is a public university in North Queensland, Australia. The second oldest university in Queensland, JCU is a teaching and research institution. The university's main campuses are located in the tropical cities of Cairns and Townsville, and one in the city state of Singapore. JCU also has study centres in Mount Isa, Mackay, Thursday Island and Rockhampton. A Brisbane campus, operated by Russo Higher Education, delivers undergraduate and postgraduate courses to international students. The university's main fields of research include environmental sciences, biological sciences, mathematical sciences, earth sciences, agricultural and veterinary sciences, technology and medical and health sciences.
Cancer Research UK (CRUK) is the world's largest independent cancer research organisation. It is registered as a charity in the United Kingdom and Isle of Man, and was formed on 4 February 2002 by the merger of The Cancer Research Campaign and the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. Cancer Research UK conducts research using both its own staff and grant-funded researchers. It also provides information about cancer and runs campaigns aimed at raising awareness and influencing public policy.
The Brain Tumour Charity is a UK-based, Charity Commission registered, charity dedicated to funding research, raising awareness of brain tumours, reducing diagnosis times and providing support and information for people with brain tumours, their families and friends.
Major Mark Beretta is an Australian journalist, best known as a sports reporter on Seven Network program Sunrise, he has also been an officer in the Australian Army Reserve in public relations since 2019.
Samuel Joseph Johnson is an Australian actor. He is best known for his roles as Evan Wylde in the television series The Secret Life of Us for which he won the AFI award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Telefeature in 2001, Leon Broznic in Rush, Toby Kirby in After the Deluge and as Molly Meldrum in the miniseries Molly for which he won the AACTA Award for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama and won the Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Television of 2017.
Carrie Bickmore is an Australian talk show and current affairs Gold Logie award-winning television and radio presenter. She currently co-hosts a national drive radio show on the Hit Network, Carrie & Tommy, from 3–6pm weeknights alongside Tommy Little. She was previously a co-host on Network 10's The Project from 2009–2022.
Charles Teo AM is an Australian neurosurgeon.
Denise Sheer was appointed professor of human genetics at The Institute of Cell and Molecular Science at Queen Mary, University of London in November 2006. Her fields of expertise include cell and molecular biology; cancer genetics and epigenetics; and molecular pathology of paediatric brain tumours.
A brainstem glioma is a cancerous glioma tumor in the brainstem. Around 75% are diagnosed in children and young adults under the age of twenty, but have been known to affect older adults as well. Brainstem gliomas start in the brain or spinal cord tissue and typically spread throughout the nervous system.
The Cancer Institute NSW Premier's Awards for Outstanding Cancer Research are the premier awards ceremony for the cancer research sector in NSW. Now in its tenth year, the event honours the achievements of the individuals and teams that work across the cancer research sector to lessen the impact of cancer for the people of NSW.
Plus Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing innovative, targeted radiotherapeutics for adults and children with rare and difficult-to-treat cancers. The company is headquartered in Austin, Texas, United States.
Notes Left Behind is a 2009 non-fiction book by Keith and Brooke Desserich, the parents of a six-year-old girl named Elena who died of cancer. The book is a publication of some of the hundreds of notes Elena left for her parents to find after her death. It follows Elena's battle against brain cancer.
Diffuse midline glioma, H3 K27-altered (DMG) is a fatal tumour that arises in midline structures of the brain, most commonly the brainstem, thalamus and spinal cord. When located in the pons it is also known as diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG).
Michelle Haber is an Australian cancer researcher in the field of childhood cancer research.
Vanessa Hayes is a geneticist conducting research into cancer genomics and comparative human genomics. She leads a research group at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney Australia and holds the Petre Chair of Prostate Cancer Research at the University of Sydney.
Rahul Jandial is an American, dual-trained brain surgeon and neuroscientist. He is also a London Times bestselling & international bestselling author with his books translated into over 20 languages.
Children's Cancer Institute is an Australian medical research institute wholly dedicated to the prevention and treatment of childhood cancer. Established in 1976, the Institute is affililiated with both the University of New South Wales and Sydney Children's Hospital and is located in Randwick, Sydney, New South Wales.
The Children's Cancer Foundation is a registered Australian charity that supports children with cancer and their families.
Clinica 0-19 is a medical clinic in Monterrey, Mexico that claims to treat diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). Although DIPG is currently regarded as one of the most devastating pediatric cancers, with a survival rate of <1% over five years, the clinic states that their treatment, which can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, has resulted in some patients no longer having any evidence of disease. However, there is no credible evidence to support their claims and at least some of their patients were found to have tumor growth a few months later. Oncologists and others have criticized the clinic's lead doctors, Alberto Siller and Alberto Garcia, for their lack of transparency, for not publishing their treatment protocol or survival rates, for the high costs of treatment, and for discouraging their patients from using radiation therapy.
Michelle Leigh Monje-Deisseroth is a neuroscientist and neuro-oncologist. She is a professor of neurology at Stanford University and an investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. She develops new treatments for diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma.