MDA achievement award

BANGOR – Donald Aucoin of Bangor has been named the recipient of the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s 2008 Robert Ross Personal Achievement Award for Maine.

Aucoin, 56, was selected for the honor because of his personal success and his efforts to make a positive difference in the lives of others.

Initiated in 1992, the national awards program recognizes the accomplishments and community service of people with disabilities caused by any of the diseases in MDA’s program.

The awards were renamed in honor of Robert Ross, MDA’s longtime chief executive, who died in June 2006. For more than four decades, Ross coordinated MDA activities related to fundraising, publicity, medical and humanitarian services, disability policies and research.

Ross created the Personal Achievement Award program to educate the public that disability is no obstacle to accomplishment.

Aucoin is an active member of his community, serving as a greeter at his church, St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Bangor, and as a member of the Third Order of Franciscans.

He has an intense interest in science and astronomy, and is a community special educator on NASA space projects.

Aucoin also is a consultant for Alpha One, an agency which promotes independent living in people with disabilities, and volunteers time to help others with disabilities.

The author of two as-yet-unpublished novels, Aucoin is an avid Star Trek fan, a passion he shares in the Bangor-Brewer Fourth of July parade and in other venues. He and his wife, Sharon, also coordinate a writing program that regularly meets at a Borders bookstore to encourage writers.

“I’m proud to announce Donald Aucoin as Maine’s Robert Ross MDA Personal Achievement Award recipient for 2008,” MDA President & CEO Gerald C. Weinberg said. “Don is a great example of the contributions people with disabilities consistently make to their communities.”

Aucoin also is involved with MDA, participating in many of its programs, fundraising events and support groups, where he serves as a resource to families coping with neuromuscular disease. He participates every year in the Give Me Five Walk and has volunteered at the local broadcast of the Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon for a number of years.

In August 1987, Aucoin received a diagnosis of Becker muscular dystrophy, a degenerative genetic disease that causes generalized weakness and wasting. He uses a power wheelchair for mobility and noninvasive ventilation at night to assist his breathing.

Aucoin was chosen for the achievement award by MDA’s State of Maine Chapter.

One state award recipient will be selected to receive MDA’s 2009 Robert Ross Personal Achievement Award. The national honoree will be announced on the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon on Labor Day weekend, Aug. 31-Sept. 1.

MDA’s 2008 national award recipient is Michael Neufeldt of New Berlin, Wis. Neufeldt, who has Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy, works in interactive communications for the Harley-Davidson Motor Co. in Milwaukee.

The Muscular Dystrophy Association is a voluntary health agency working to defeat more than 40 forms of muscular dystrophy and other neuromuscular diseases through programs of worldwide research, comprehensive services and professional and public health education.

MDA maintains clinics at Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor and Maine Medical Center in Portland.

The association’s programs are funded almost entirely by individual private contributors.

Predicting bone fracture

BANGOR – Those concerned about osteoporosis and bone fractures may be scheduled for a bone mineral density test, which can determine the amount of mineral in certain areas of bone.

While a low score on the test indicates an increased risk of having a broken bone, it is only one factor. Other information such as age, health history, smoking and medication use must be considered along with the bone density test score to more accurately determine a person’s fracture risk.

The World Health Organization has developed an online tool for predicting a person’s fracture risk in the next 10 years.

FRAX, or Fracture Risk Assessment Tool, available through the National Osteoporosis Web site, examines bone density test scores for individuals and collects information on other risk factors in order to predict how likely it is that person will break a bone.

Elizabeth Duke, a nurse practitioner, will explain the FRAX tool at the Caring Connections Bone Health Information and Discussion Group at 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 9, at the Bangor Y on Second Street.

Duke practices at the Maine Rehabilitation Center and sees patients with osteoporosis at the Breast and Osteoporosis Center at Eastern Maine Medical Center.

The session is free and those concerned about bone health are welcome to attend. Bring bone density test scores if available.

A calcium-rich snack and recipe will be provided. To obtain more information or to attend the meeting, call Robin Long at 941-2808.

Caring Connections is a cooperative program of the Bangor Y and Eastern Maine Medical Center, supported by the fundraising efforts of Healthcare Charities.

Talk on assistive technology

BANGOR – The Physical Disabilities Support Group will meet at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, July 3, at Alpha One, 1048 Union St.

Lynn Gitlow, head of occupational therapy at Husson College, will talk about a new program in the planning stages on assistive technology. She will be looking for comment from people with disabilities during the planning process.

Study on siblings of children with cancer

BREWER – When a child is diagnosed with cancer, the news is devastating not only for the child and the parents.

Many siblings are suddenly thrust into a world of life-changing experiences that leave a lasting impression. Although many excellent resources exist within hospitals for families of children with cancer, sometimes siblings feel alone and neglected.

New research at The Maine Institute for Human Genetics and Health is intended to identify early signs of poor adjustment and post-traumatic stress in the siblings of children with cancer, in an effort to help siblings cope during this difficult time.

Dr. Sandra Sigmon and Dr. Marie Hayes, professors of psychology at the University of Maine, and affiliated senior scientists at the institute, are investigating how Super Sibs! a national program dedicated to supporting brothers and sisters of children with cancer, helps a child cope.

They hope to identify factors that lead to an increase in distress.

Sigmon and Hayes said that such an increase in distress might put a sibling at higher risk of developing serious illness in the future. Because of this, it is important to lower risks of post-traumatic stress symptoms in brothers and sister of children with cancer.

Sigmon said, “We find there is a direct relationship between stress and immune function. Although adaptations to stress may vary, we are concerned with the child’s immune vulnerability and the possible link between stress and disease.”

The pilot study, approved by the Eastern Maine Medical Center, University of Maine and United States Department of Defense Institutional Review Boards, will follow children over an eight-month period, interviewing siblings and parents.

Resiliency and signs of how well the siblings are adjusting will be analyzed. Staff at the institute hope the findings of the research will help in research on post-traumatic stress disorder among other groups, such as military veterans.

“No matter what we find, this research will be helpful,” said Hayes. “Having the opportunity to study psychological adjustment from the time of the trauma prospectively is a unique aspect of this study and will offer the scientific community invaluable data for further research on post-traumatic stress.”

Families with newly diagnosed children with cancer who would like to hear more about the project for their well child may call 581-2059 or toll-free 866-519-2822.

Research in cancer

BREWER – The Maine Institute for Human Genetics and Health and CancerCare of Maine at Eastern Maine Medical Center have announced the addition of Donna Goodspeed, registered nurse, and Petra Helbig to their staffs.

In their role with the institute’s Tissue Repository, Donna and Petra will work with cancer surgeons to offer pre-surgical cancer patients the opportunity to participate in clinical research by donating blood and tissue samples at the same time their tumor is removed.

These specimens will be stored at the institute’s Maine Human Cancer Tissue Repository for use in cancer research.

“We are very pleased that Donna and Petra will be joining our team. The Tissue Repository they will help create is funded by our grant from the U.S. Department of Defense. It is intended for scientists to study if interactions between genes and environmental exposures can be used to develop new ways of treating cancer,” said Dr. Janet Hock, director of the Maine Institute for Human Genetics and Health.

In their clinical research roles at CancerCare of Maine, Goodspeed and Helbig will join a research team of cancer specialists who educate and offer opportunities to patients for participation in national clinical trials.

Dr. Merrill Garrett, medical director of CancerCare of Maine, commented, “We look forward to Donna and Petra joining our research staff. They bring with them expertise that will help to strengthen our already robust clinical trial program.”

Donna Goodspeed brings 31 years of oncology nursing experience, both in EMMC’s inpatient cancer unit and in CancerCare of Maine’s outpatient center. She began her new role on June 16.

Petra Helbig graduated from the Universitaet Mannheim in Germany with a master’s degree in psychology.

She has 14 years of clinical research experience, the last five years in oncology research at Rapid City Regional Hospital’s Cancer Care Institute in South Dakota. She began her new position on May 19.

The Maine Institute for Human Genetics and Health was founded by EMHS, EMMC, the University of Maine and The Jackson Laboratory. The institute conducts translational research to facilitate the introduction of innovations and discoveries to improve medical care and help resolve the challenges of health disparities in Maine’s rural communities. The institute’s primary research programs target cancer, and also hosts a multicenter Neurogenetics Consortium conducting research on neurosciences and substance abuse.

Nurses reunion

BANGOR – The EMGH, EMMC and Husson College Nurses Alumni Association will hold its annual reunion Saturday, July 19, at the Campus Center, Husson College.

The schedule is:

. Meet and begin the festivities, 1 p.m.

. Games and surprises, 2-4 p.m.

. Silent auction, 4-5 p.m.

. Dinner, 5:30 p.m. The cost of the dinner is $16 per person. The reservation deadline is Saturday, July 12, by writing Gloria Lee, association treasurer, at 238 Goshen Road, Winterport 04496.

The dinner menu, prepared by Chef Brian Ross of JB Cafe and Catering in Bangor, will be served buffet style.

The menu is garden salad with assorted dressing, grilled chicken breast with sweet Marsala and mushroom sauce, grilled salmon fillet with cucumber dill sauce, confetti rice, mixed vegetables, dessert assortment and beverages.

Diabetes Support Group

BANGOR – St. Joseph Healthcare’s monthly evening Diabetes Support Group will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, July 8, in the Diabetes and Nutrition Center, Building 1, St. Joseph Healthcare Park, 900 Broadway.

Group members share personal experiences relating to diabetes management, stress reduction and coping skills.

A second, daytime support group also meets at 1 p.m. the first Thursday of each month, but will not meet in July. The next scheduled meeting of this group is 1 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 7.