U2FP CureCast
118 episodes - English - Latest episode: 11 days ago - ★★★★★ - 8 ratingsUnite 2 Fight Paralysis exists to unite and empower the international spinal cord injury community to cure paralysis through advocacy, education, and support for research. Get Educated and Get Involved.
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Episodes
Start Here - Episode 106
July 12, 2024 12:00 - 20 minutes - 18.9 MBToday’s episode is a brief primer on how this podcast got started and the kind of conversations you can expect here. You’ll learn about our hosts - Matthew Rodreick and Jason Stoffer – their relationship to SCI, why they do this work, what they hope this podcast can achieve and how this work is an extension of the broader mission of U2FP? Yes, it’s a great place to start for new listeners. But regular listeners may learn something new, particularly about our hosts, Matthew and Jason, and wha...
ONWARD to Recovery - Episode 105
June 21, 2024 12:00 - 42 minutes - 39.2 MBToday's episode is my conversation with Dave Marver, the CEO of ONWARD. No doubt you've heard of ONWARD. We discuss the recent news about their transcutaneous stimulation device and their effort to gain regulatory approval, along with the results from their Uplift TRIAL. You'll find links to the trial and related articles on our website to help understand what that is. More info: https://u2fp.org/get-educated/curecast/episode-105.html
Still Chasin the Cheddar - Episode 104
June 07, 2024 12:00 - 1 hour - 61.6 MBThis week we are talking with Jake Beckstrom, who is U2FP’s Co-Manager of the Cure Advocacy Network along with our Wisconsin advocate Michael Mohr. It's a great conversation where we talk about the drama that took place this year with our legislative work in Wisconsin, where we past our $3M SCI Research in the Wisconsin Assembly, but were unable to then pass it in the Senate. It was a nailbiter that came down to the wire, and Jake and Mike had front row seats for the dramatic, if disappointin...
Spinal Media (Episode 103)
May 24, 2024 12:00 - 1 hour - 64.1 MBOur guest today is Leann Rees. Leanne is a physical therapist with a PhD from Melbourne, Australia. She’s been in the business of rehab and reintegration for 30 years, 20 of which were spent in spinal cord injury. Leanne’s doctoral thesis examined many aspects and consequences of the media portrayal of spinal cord injury and that is what we’re talking today. This is a fascinating discussion about the historical and contemporary portrayals of SCI and how that portrayal influences the SCI Comm...
Bladder Chatter (Episode 102)
May 10, 2024 12:00 - 52 minutes - 48.2 MBToday we’re talking with Dennis Bourbeau. Dennis is a highly regarded clinical and academic researcher in the area of bowel/bladder/and sexual function. He works for the Louis Stokes Veterans Administration Hospital and the Metro Health County Hospital in Cleveland, OH. He’s also a faculty member at Case Western Reserve University. Dennis has graciously agreed to come back to chat with us a second time and give us an update on his work, specifically in bladder control devices. We also discuss...
Father of Stim (Episode 101)
April 26, 2024 12:00 - 1 hour - 63.3 MBToday we are talking to V. Reggie Edgerton, a Professor Emeritus of Nuerobiology at UCLA and co-founder of the spinal stimulation company, SpineX. Reggie Edgerton is a giant in the field of neuromodulation. Some have called him the father of spinal stimulation, and his influence can be found in... More info: https://u2fp.org/get-educated/curecast/episode-101.html
Milestones (Episode 100)
April 12, 2024 13:00 - 58 minutes - 53.5 MBToday we are celebrating our 100th episode of U2FP’s CureCast podcast! No guest would be more appropriate for that celebration than Kate Willette. Kate and Mathew started the podcast 6 years ago and she co-hosted the first 34 episodes. Kate also wrote the book “Don’t Call it a Miracle” which is required reading for anyone with a spinal cord injury. Kate was dragged into the world of advocacy when her husband, Bruce, became a quadriplegic in 2001 and she refused to sit idly by. Being an educat...
Your Voice Here - part 1 (Episode 99)
March 29, 2024 13:00 - 30 minutes - 28.2 MBToday we are bringing you part 1 of the “Your Voice Here” series. This collection of interviews was recorded during U2FP’s 2023 Science and Advocacy Symposium in Minneapolis. In this episode, you’ll hear from Physical Therapist, PhD and Researcher, Leanne Rees; Neuroscience student Jason Biundo; and Motivational speaker and Onward Marketing Consultant, Scott Chesney. We cover a variety of topics in this episode, among them: Leanne’s research on the media portrayal of SCI; how Jason’s climbing...
The Shoulders of Giants (Episode 98)
March 15, 2024 16:11 - 57 minutes - 52.2 MBYou might be wondering why we are interviewing the founder of the National Breast Cancer Coalition, Fran Visco. Well, it turns out that she is the person primarily responsible for the formation of the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP) out of the Defense Department. One of their many programs is SCIRP - the Spinal Cord Injury Research Program. Fran was the first peer reviewer for breast cancer after CDMRP was formed. Today's interview conversation was extraordinary for ...
Designing the Cure Garden (Episode 97)
March 01, 2024 14:00 - 54 minutes - 49.6 MBToday we are talking with Jordan Squair and Mark Anderson about their September 2023 paper published in the journal Science: “Recovery of walking after paralysis by regenerating characterized neurons to their natural target region”. The work is akin to the first gardeners figuring out how to make plants grow. But instead of plants, it's injured neurons. Squair and Anderson are both highly accomplished scientists who also happen to be best friends. They work together with Gregoire Courtine’s g...
Deep Breathing (Episode 96)
February 16, 2024 13:00 - 1 hour - 62.7 MBToday we’re talking with Dr. Kajana Satkunendrarajah. Kajana is an associate professor and researcher at the Medical College of Wisconsin. She is also an ally of our legislative efforts in Wisconsin to pass an SCI Research Grant bill there. We discuss Dr. Satkunendrarajah’s NIH R01 grant submission to study her lab's recent discovery of cervical level neurons connected to respiratory function. This leads us into a conversation about the process of grant submissions and the uncertainty and wai...
Rim To Rim (Episode 95)
February 02, 2024 13:00 - 1 hour - 67.9 MBToday's conversation features my co-host Jason Stoffer, our new development director, Quinn Brett, and their filmmaker and adventure buddy Robbie Prechtl. Last year, Jason and Quinn completed a rim to rim trip of the Grand Canyon on handcycles(!). They were accompanied by Rob and a team of friends who came along for the adventure and assistance. In case you don’t know, doing a rim to rim journey through the Grand Canyon means descending down to the basin of the canyon and then coming back up ...
Your Voice Here (Episode 94)
January 19, 2024 17:27 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBEvery year, U2FP puts on an annual science and advocacy symposium. It's a two day event where we bring together people from the SCI community, researchers, clinicians, industry representatives, and funders in an effort to educate our community about the science of curative therapies. We also hope it provides them with a better understanding of the scientific enterprise. But it’s also a conference to educate folks in the scientific community by hearing directly from individuals who live with a...
Down to Earth (Episode 93)
January 05, 2024 18:20 - 1 hour - 63.1 MBToday we are speaking with Dimitry Sayenko. Dimitry is an MD, PhD and an associate professor in Neuromodulation and Nuerosurgery at Houston Methodist Hospital, in Houston, Texas. Our conversation starts off with an exploration of Dimitry’s fascinating beginnings, studying muscle atrophy and bone density in the context of aerospace in both Russia and the U.S. We also talk about his current work studying transcutaneous electrical stimulation and end with a lively exchange of when new discoverie...
NervGen's Clinical Trial (Episode 92)
December 19, 2023 17:51 - 1 hour - 67.7 MBToday’s conversation is a highly anticipated one. For years we’ve been hearing about the groundbreaking work of Jerry Silver to render the injury scar permeable to axon growth. That work led to development of the pharmacologic NVG-291 and the associated company NervGen Pharma. The research has finally advanced to a human SCI clinical trial, led by Monica Perez, PT, PhD, who's today's guest. Dr. Perez is the scientific chair of the Arm and Hands Lab at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab and a Professor o...
You Are What You Eat (Episode 91)
December 01, 2023 17:29 - 1 hour - 71.3 MBToday we’re talking with Ceren Yarar-Fisher, PhD, PT. Dr. Yarar-Fisher is Vice Chair of Research of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in the Dept. of Neuroscience at The Ohio State University. She’s also the director of clinical research at the Belford Center for Spinal Cord Injury. In this episode, we start off exploring the unique origins of Ceren’s interest in science and later spinal cord injury. We also talk about her research interest in SCI functional recovery through rehabilitation...
Barriers & Breakthroughs (Episode 90)
November 17, 2023 17:01 - 51 minutes - 46.7 MBOur guest today is Meghan Moynihan. Megan is the executive director of the Institute for Functional Restoration, or IFR, a not-for-profit organization based at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. The IFR seeks to further functional recovery in spinal cord injury by developing commercial strategies to get that research to market. We discuss Megan's background as a researcher and her unique perspective based on 17 years with the Food and Drug Administration along with her curren...
Barriers & Breakthroughs - CureCast Episode 90
November 17, 2023 17:01 - 51 minutes - 46.7 MBOur guest today is Meghan Moynihan. Megan is the executive director of the Institute for Functional Restoration, or IFR, a not-for-profit organization based at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. The IFR seeks to further functional recovery in spinal cord injury by developing commercial strategies to get that research to market. We discuss Megan's background as a researcher and her unique perspective based on 17 years with the Food and Drug Administration along with her curren...
Phoenix Rising (Episode 89)
November 03, 2023 16:09 - 36 minutes - 33.6 MBOur conversation today is with David McMillan, an assistant professor at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, Department of Neurological Surgery, and Director of Education and Outreach for The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. Jason and Julie recorded this interview with David onsite at this year's Science and Advocacy Symposium in Minneapolis, where we had a booth set up. The conversation is more casual than our usual ones and is completely unscripted. David was walki...
What's Cooking at U2FP (Episode 88)
October 13, 2023 09:00 - 34 minutes - 31.4 MBToday’s episode is a bit different. We’re turning the mic towards our own work here at U2FP to let you in on what’s cooking. Jason and Matthew begin by discussing some unique developments with our Team U2FP racers involving extreme heat, adaptive trikes, and a trek along the rim of the Grand Canyon(!). We also discuss U2FP’s upcoming symposium, including how we designed the spinal stim panel, our focus on approaches that combine more than one curative avenue (eg stimulation + stem cells, etc)...
ANEUVO: Challenge Accepted (Episode 87)
September 29, 2023 10:00 - 1 hour - 58.8 MBToday we are talking with Yi-Kai Lo and Katie Velez of the SCI research and tech company, Aneuvo. Anuevo has been busy working with investors, the FDA, and multiple research sites to clinically deploy the ExaStim, a novel transcutaneous stimulation device. The goal of their current ASPIRE study is to improve upper limb function. We discuss Dr. Lo’s background in tech and how he was inspired to put that training to use in the field of spinal cord injury. We learn about his drive to pursue chal...
Aneuvo: Challenge Accepted (Episode 87)
September 29, 2023 10:00 - 1 hour - 58.8 MBToday we are talking with Yi-Kai Lo and Katie Velez of the SCI research and tech company, Aneuvo. Anuevo has been busy working with investors, the FDA, and multiple research sites to clinically deploy the ExaStim, a novel transcutaneous stimulation device. The goal of their current ASPIRE study is to improve upper limb function. We discuss Dr. Lo’s background in tech and how he was inspired to put that training to use in the field of spinal cord injury. We learn about his drive to pursue chal...
Vagus Nerve Stimulation (Episode 86)
September 15, 2023 12:00 - 1 hour - 59.7 MBThe topic of today’s conversation is the Vagus nerve. In Latin, Vagus means wandering or straying, which this conversation does a fair bit of due to the interesting subject matter. Our guide on this path is Dr. Patrick Ganzer of the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. Dr. Ganzer gives us a great overview of the vagus nerve including its possible evolutionary benefits, early explorations and its unique attributes. More importantly, Dr. Ganzer explains how the vagus nerve can be stimulated to open...
Community Research Priorities (Episode 85)
September 01, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 57 MBToday's guest is Dr. Kim Anderson, a friend and a very influential researcher who we have a really great conversation with. We begin with the story of her spinal cord injury along with her early studies and research, and that leads into one of the things she’s known for: her work on patient preference as a result of directly surveying the spinal cord injury community. Finally, we explore how this trajectory in her work influenced the research community going forward. I think you're going to e...
Blink of an Eye (Episode 84)
August 18, 2023 09:00 - 1 hour - 68.1 MBToday, our guest is Louise Phipps Senft. Louise is the mother to a son with an SCI, and founder of Blink of an Eye, a nonprofit organization that is committed to addressing that initial moment when everything changes after a spinal cord injury. A big theme of this conversation is trauma. And one of the things that arises in our dialogue with Louise is how this emotional trauma kind of goes under or undiagnosed – both with the injured person AND with the family and the extended community. Loui...
The Bog (Episode 83)
August 04, 2023 10:00 - 1 hour - 89.1 MBWhat you are about to hear is one of the richest conversations we’ve ever had on the show. Our guests today are Gabriel Rodreick (Matthew’s son) and Julie Censullo (CureCast producer) who are here to discuss an audio-art project they created together called “Life Begins in the Stillness” - which we play at the top of the episode. We then dive into their relationship with spinal cord injury, with each other, with art and with the creative process. This conversation goes deep into the ripple e...
Acute Injury Inquiry (Episode 82)
July 21, 2023 13:00 - 1 hour - 69.5 MBCureCast co-host Jason Stoffer was injured 5 and ½ years ago. Earlier this year, his friend Lewis Johnson sustained a spinal cord injury. The similarities are uncanny: they were both in the same career field; they both went to the same inpatient hospital; and they both attended the same inpatient rehab facility. For Jason, the big question on the table is this: What has changed in 5 years? What progress are we making? Are newly injured folks getting the same message I got from my clinicians...
Reprogramming SCI? (Episode 81)
July 07, 2023 12:00 - 55 minutes - 50.5 MBWhat if we could take all the neural trash that forms in the spinal cord after an injury, the stuff that hinders connectivity, and turn it into treasure? This is the idea behind cellular reprogramming. Today's podcast guest, Dr. Arshak Alexanian, is a biochemist and the Chief Scientific Officer at the Wisconsin biotech firm, Cell Reprogramming & Therapuetics, LLC. We met Dr. Alexanian not too long ago while advocating for our $3M SCI Research Grant bill in the Wisconsin legislature. Dr. Alexa...
A Firm Foundation (Episode 80)
June 23, 2023 17:00 - 1 hour - 56.1 MBToday's guest on the podcast is Kym Eisner, the executive director of the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation. This year happens to be the Neilsen Foundation’s 20th anniversary. For those who are unfamiliar with the Foundation, its namesake Craig H. Neilsen, was an entrepreneur who sustained a spinal cord injury in 1985 and formed the foundation in 2002. This was an attempt to catalyze research and support for people living with a spinal cord injury. In the last 20 years, The Neilsen Foundation has c...
Trials and Tribulations (Episode 79)
June 09, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 69.7 MBHave you ever wondered what it feels like to participate in an SCI clinical research trial? How do you find out about these trials? How do you find out about these trials? Does anyone make a recovery? What are some reasons that you might take the leap - or not? On today’s podcast, you’ll get some answers to these questions and many more. Our guests, Mandy Mackenzie and Laura Grabowski, have each participated in a number of clinical trials and we’ve put them in the hot seat to give you an ide...
Trial by Stimulation Rebroadcast (Episode 78)
May 12, 2023 12:00 - 32 minutes - 30.2 MBToday’s episode is a rebroadcast of our conversation with Grégoire Courtine from two years ago. Dr. Courtine has been pivotal in the successful application of epidural stimulation in humans with SCI, in both his research and device commercialization. In this episode, we talk about Dr. Courtine’s motivation to study spinal cord injury and epidural stimulation in particular. We discuss the translation of his early rodent model research into humans and the mechanism of the therapy, such as targe...
Triple Threat (Episode 77)
April 28, 2023 15:00 - 1 hour - 59.2 MBToday our guest is Dan Hellenbrand, a renaissance man of sorts. Dan sustained a cervical injury (C5-6) as a carpenter back in 2003 and ended up going back to school to become a SCI researcher, as well as an advocate for curative therapies. We have an interesting conversation about early physical therapy, the role of belief and competition with yourself and how that aids recovery. We also discuss Dan’s research and interest in mitigating early damage at the injury site, acute versus chronic in...
'Dancing Molecules' Rebroadcast (Episode 76)
April 14, 2023 07:00 - 57 minutes - 53 MBToday's conversation is a rebroadcast of our interview with Samuel Stupp back in 2022. We thought it was a good time to revisit this conversation, given Dr. Stupp’s most recent publication, which you can learn more about below in the summary review done by U2FP’s science writer, Sam Maddox. More info and research links here: https://u2fp.org/get-educated/curecast/episode-76.html As always, please share your thoughts with us via email at [email protected]. Thanks for listening!
Junk Drawer: Spinal Stimulation (Episode 75)
March 31, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 67.5 MBToday’s episode revisits important elements and loose ends of spinal cord stimulation (SCS) that didn’t fit neatly into the arc of our first three conversations on this topic. We’re calling this installment the ‘Junk Drawer’ - not because we consider these loose ends to be junk, but because they represent the multi-directional potential of stimulation’s promise that are on the horizon. This includes strategies we haven't fully broached such as combination therapies and clinical trials that ar...
Episode 74: Chasing Regeneration
March 17, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 67.2 MBToday we talk with Bill Murphy, a bioengineer out of the University of Wisconsin Madison. We recently met Dr. Murphy when he came to the Wisconsin Capitol in support of our $3M SCI Research Grant bill back in January. Bill’s team has been working on developing biomaterials to improve the body’s ability to receive and utilize Chondroitinase ABC (ChABC). ChABC is an enzyme that holds lots of promise for jump starting axon regeneration, a key element for repairing the damaged spinal cord. But ...
Chasing Regeneration (Episode 74)
March 17, 2023 11:00 - 1 hour - 67.2 MBToday we talk with Bill Murphy, a bioengineer out of the University of Wisconsin Madison. We recently met Dr. Murphy when he came to the Wisconsin Capitol in support of our $3M SCI Research Grant bill back in January. Bill’s team has been working on developing biomaterials to improve the body’s ability to receive and utilize Chondroitinase ABC (ChABC). ChABC is an enzyme that holds lots of promise for jump starting axon regeneration, a key element for repairing the damaged spinal cord. But ...
Episode 73: Spinal Stimulation 101 (part 3)
March 02, 2023 20:33 - 1 hour - 67.3 MBThis is the third and final (for now) installment of our 101 tour of spinal stimulation. We're joined again by Sam Maddox, U2FP's Scientific Advisory Board Director and veteran science journalist. Today, we discuss the commercialization of spinal stim, detailing the path that these therapies will need to traverse to arrive at the market. We talk about how labs and businesses are organized and review some of the challenges they face, including obtaining FDA approval, getting funded, and orga...
Episode 72: Spinal Stimulation 101 (part 2)
February 16, 2023 20:19 - 1 hour - 88.8 MBWe’re continuing our conversation around spinal cord stimulation in part 2 of this multi-episode series with Sam Maddox, a long-time SCI science writer and U2FP’s Scientific Advisory Board Director. Today we’re going to focus on what’s happening currently with some spinal stimulation researchers, what clinical outcomes they are targeting, how they are connected to each other and how their approaches differ. Additionally, you’ll hear Matthew and Sam share the insight they gained from their t...
Episode 71: Spinal Stimulation 101 (part 1)
February 03, 2023 18:02 - 52 minutes - 71.9 MBJason and Matthew talk with U2FP Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) Director and Science Writer, Sam Maddox in the first part of our series on Spinal Stimulation. We’ve been thinking about the need for a discussion on what spinal stimulation is, why it's been studied so extensively, who are the influential scientists and players in the space, the trajectory of where and how it started as an exploration for restoring function in SCI, and - most importantly - what this all means for folks with a s...
Psilocybin & SCI: Thinking Outside the Box (Episode 70)
January 19, 2023 22:55 - 1 hour - 135 MBJason and Matthew interview Jim Harris, a wilderness photographer who was injured in 2014. Jim was recently featured in Outside Magazine regarding his experience with psilocybin and its connection to some restored mobility. This conversation is a follow-up to our previous podcast with Dr. Jessica Nielson on the potential use of psilocybin after SCI. However, in this episode, we specifically focus on one of our community member's direct experience with exploring the use of psychedelics and his...
Taking a Trip with SCI (Episode 69)
December 17, 2022 00:22 - 57 minutes - 95.5 MBThe research of psychedelics as a therapeutic for anxiety, depression, and PTSD has gained a lot of traction over the last decade. Given their potent effects on the nervous system, what are the unique benefits and possible side effects of psychedelics for the SCI population? And further, what is their potential to elicit functional recovery? If you ask the community, it doesn’t take long to find anecdotal evidence that the benefits go beyond just the psychological realm. Read Jim Harris’ acco...
The Mind-Body Connection (Episode 68)
October 19, 2022 21:21 - 1 hour - 136 MBMatthew and Jason talk with Ann Van de Winckel, a researcher and physical therapist at the University of Minnesota, Medical School, who is doing fascinating work to help restore body awareness below the level of injury - yes, you read that right - using cognitive multisensory rehabilitation (CMR). Dr. Van de Winckel’s work is showing reductions in neuropathic pain, sensation and motor recovery with people who’ve suffered from spinal cord injury. This discussion spans Ann’s unique blending of ...
Test Your Limits (Episode 67)
September 30, 2022 15:51 - 53 minutes - 43 MBThis episode features Thomas Cloyd, who is competing in the Bank of America Chicago Marathon for Team U2FP next Sunday, October 9th. Thomas’ reasons for joining Team U2FP go well beyond just this race. His history with U2FP goes back almost a decade when he helped Matthew Rodreick and others in the SCI community pass the SCI/TBI Research Grant bill here in Minnesota in 2015. That bill was the catalyst for U2FP’s Cure Advocacy Network (CAN), which has now passed over $25M in SCI research fun...
Disdain for the Status Quo (Episode 66)
September 07, 2022 15:37 - 1 hour - 147 MBJason and Mathew talk with Andrew Park, a clinician-researcher at Craig Rehabilitation Hospital in Denver, Colorado. Jason met Andrew while in Denver for one of U2FP’s Cure Advocacy Network stakeholder meetings last February. During that meeting, Andrew’s passion for his work became evident. In this podcast, we talk about what’s behind that passion, including: his path to becoming a researcher; his research interests and philosophy; a system-level path to functional recovery for the SCI c...
Racing for Cures (Episode 65)
August 25, 2022 19:45 - 45 minutes - 81.8 MBJason and Matthew talk with Lucia Webb, U2FP’s Operations Director. We focus on a seemingly minor aspect of our work - our racing and fundraising initiative, Team U2FP - and breakdown why it’s critical for so much of what we do, especially the legislative bills we’ve passed through our Cure Advocacy Network. We talk about the impact of Team U2FP for everyone - not just marathon racers and wheelers - as well as opportunities to become involved in and support our work.
A Team Effort (Episode 64)
August 15, 2022 18:57 - 1 hour - 144 MBJason and Matthew interview Dr. Camillo Castillo, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physician at Frazer Rehabilitation Hospital in Louisville KY along with his Clinical SCI Navigation team: Emily Coons, Brendan Doksa and Heather Connor. We are raising a simple question about the introduction of spinal cord stimulation (SCS) to the clinic: are we ready to receive it? What will that look like? Who follows the person with the stimulator? Who sets the parameters for stimulation? How is it pai...
The Doctor Will See You Now (Episode 63)
June 07, 2022 21:02 - 1 hour - 150 MBJason and Matthew interview Dr. Uzma Samadani, a neurosurgeon working in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Dr. Samadani participated in the EStand trial (https://www.estand.org/) along with David Darrow, Ann Parr and Taye Nettoff. We decided to interview Dr. Samadani based on her experience of implanting epidural stimulators in people with SCI - as part of her clinical practice - instead of the current approach, which is to limit access to only those enrolled in a relevant clinical trial. We talk abou...
The Care-Cure Divide? (Episode 62)
May 17, 2022 20:33 - 45 minutes - 87 MBWe are dedicating this podcast episode to Franklin Elieh, co-founder of NorCalSCI (https://norcalsci.org/news/2022/franklin). Franklin died this past month after living for decades with an SCI. He embodied the critical characteristics of empathy, systems thinking and deep connection to the community that all successful advocates share. He also lived his life on the continuum of Care and Cure. His death is a reminder of much work we have ahead of us to improve Care and deliver Cures. Quinn an...
Badgering Wisconsin for a Cure Epsiode 61
March 18, 2022 16:58 - 1 hour - 133 MBJason and Matthew talk with Samantha Troyer, an SCI peer mentor in Wisconsin who joined up with U2FP’s Cure Advocacy Network (CAN) to become a legislative advocate there. Sam is joined by our CAN Manager, Jake Beckstrom. We talk about the current effort to pass an SCI research funding Bill in Wisconsin, its attendant ups and downs, unique challenges, the perseverance required for this work, and the power of our shared SCI story. We wanted to give you an inside look at our advocacy efforts, i...
CureCast Episode 60 Samuel Stupp
March 04, 2022 17:52 - 1 hour - 115 MBJason and Matthew speak with Samuel Stupp, a Professor of Materials Science, Chemistry, Medicine, and Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University. You may remember reading about Dr. Stupp late last year when news about his ‘dancing molecules’ used in a preclinical model of acute spinal cord injury circulated widely. We discuss Dr. Stupp’s discoveries, his commitment to researching and delivering a therapeutic for SCI and this area of study typically outside of the SCI world. --- Samuel...