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>>Narrator: JUST TO LOOK AT ELAINE KIOURTSIS YOU’D NEVER KNOW SHE IS UNDERGOING ALMOST
CONSTANT TREATMENT FOR A SERIOUS BRAIN TUMOR. BUT TUCKED IN THIS BACKPACK AND NEATLY UNDER
HER HAT IS A SECRET WEAPON THAT’S GIVEN ELAINE HER LIFE BACK.
>>Elaine Kiourtsis: “Oh, it allows me to do everything. We go to church all the time,
we go here - I’ll tell you, it doesn’t interfere.”
>>Narrator: A FEW MONTHS AGO, ELAINE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH A DANGEROUS TYPE OF BRAIN TUMOR CALLED
A GLIOBLASTOMA. AFTER UNDERGOING SURGERY, CHEMOTHERAPY AND
RADIATION, DOCTORS GAVE HER THIS - A KIND OF HELMET SHE WEARS UP TO 18 HOURS A DAY,
THAT BOMBARDS HER BRAIN WITH ELECTRICAL CURRENTS.
>> Robert Cavaliere, MD: “The currents then interrupt the ability of cells to divide,
thereby leading to cellular death, thereby, leading to tumor death.”
>>Narrator: ROBERT CAVALIERE IS A SPECIALIST AT OHIO STATE’S JAMES CANCER HOSPITAL.
HE SAYS THE DEVICE HAS SHOWN A REMARKABLE ABILITY TO NOT ONLY SLOW THE GROWTH OF BRAIN
TUMORS, BUT IN SOME CASES, TUMORS HAVE ACTUALLY SHRUNK.
BEST OF ALL, THE ELECTRICAL CURRENTS THAT KILL CANCER CELLS DON’T HURT HEALTHY ONES
- AND IT CAN WORK JUST AS WELL AS CHEMO BUT WITHOUT THE SERIOUS SIDE AFFECTS.
>>Robert Cavaliere, MD: “The major studies that have been performed suggest that this
is equivalent to chemotherapies in terms of outcomes.”
>>Narrator: RIGHT NOW THE DEVICE IS ONLY BEING USED ON BRAIN TUMORS, BUT THERE ARE PLANS
TO TEST THE TECHNOLOGY ON OTHER TYPES OF CANCER. ELAINE SAYS OTHER THAN GETTING SLIGHTLY WARM
AT TIMES, SHE OFTEN FORGETS THAT IT’S THERE. SHE’S CONTENT TO LET IT DEAL WITH HER BRAIN
TUMOR WHILE SHE GETS ON WITH HER LIFE. AT OHIO STATE’S JAMES CANCER HOSPITAL, THIS
IS CLARK POWELL REPORTING.