ABOUT DIPG

DIPG (Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma) is a disease which strikes at the heart of childhood and it is a disease in desperate need of a cure. And at the same time, there may be no better place to start the search for a homerun cure for cancer.

DIPG affects the pons portion of the brainstem, rendering nervous system function impossible. Symptoms include double vision, inability to close the eyelids completely, dropping one side of the face, and difficulty chewing and swallowing. Unfortunately these symptoms usually worsen rapidly because the tumor is rapidly growing.

DIPG, for all its difficulties, presents an opportunity for all forms of cancer. It is one of the most resistant of all cancers to chemotherapy treatments; it affects primarily children (whose treatment has historically led to innovations in many other forms of cancer), and with a "dismal" prognosis, alternatives are few. Put together, these obstacles offer researchers a chance to revolutionize cancer research and prevention. It is even suggested that a cure to DIPG might result in a cure for almost every other type of cancer. For this reason, the cure starts now.

The Cure Starts Now strives to generate the resources necessary for doctors to study DIPG and implement the findings in hope of curing DIPG, and hopefully all cancers.

Learn more about DIPG facts, causes, and treatment at dipg.org