Register for CCFA's Annual Advances in IBD Conference Before October 8 for Discounted Registration

CCFA's annual Advances in IBD Clinical & Research Conference is being held in Hollywood, Florida Decemeber 3-6, 2009 and is for clinicians, practitioners, basic scientists and researchers.  This year's conference will include expanded sessions for pediatric specialists and nurses, as well as a new session on endoscopy advances in IBD.  View the conference faculty, agenda and register online before October 8 for discounted registration.

Preceptorship Program in IBD Program

Community-based gastroenterologists are invited to apply for CCFA's Preceptorship—a highly competitive three-day program held at leading IBD centers throughout the country providing a one-on-one, hands-on experience to develop expand expertise in IBD. More Information

DNA Bank

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, affects approximately 1.4 million Americans of all ages. Although fewer than 20% of individuals with IBD have a close relative who is also affected, the lifetime risk for developing IBD is 10 to 20 times higher for close family members (siblings or offspring) of persons with IBD than it is for the general population. This strongly suggests that genetic factors may play an important role in determining whether an individual develops IBD. Identifying specific genes that affect risk is a priority for researchers seeking to understand the underlying disease process in order to improve the treatment and prevention of IBD.

To facilitate this research goal, the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA) has created an IBD DNA Data bank resource, containing DNA samples and detailed phenotype data on a large number of IBD patients. Blood samples were obtained from patients with well-characterized Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis. Samples were then collected from each patient's parents, or, if one or both parents were deceased, from unaffected age- and sex-matched controls sampled from the general population. Immortalized cell lines were produced from most of the blood samples and high-quality DNA was derived primarily from those cell lines.  For a small proportion of the samples the patient's cell line immortalization failed and whole genome amplified (WGA) DNA is available instead. This resource is available to qualified investigators in the scientific community for innovative studies of genetic markers related to IBD.  At CCFA we believe that genetic research has the potential to advance our understanding of the etiologies and natural histories of the various forms of IBD, with the long term goal of improving treatment and minimizing the overall impact of IBD.

Interested investigators may view available phenotype data elements, obtain summaries of the numbers of affected patients and family or population controls, and submit research proposals at the DNA Data bank website, www.CCFADatabank.org.

Appeal Letters NEW!
Appeal letters are valuable new resources for physicians and other health care professionals to utilize.  We have created these letters and templates to assist in appealing insurance decisions, requesting school accomodation and other services and/or resources for your patients.  A sampling of topics are: 

   *School Accommodations          *Social Security Disability
   *Life Insurance                           *Pediatric Adalimumab Therapy
   *Free & Low Cost Medicine      *Employment Accommodations
   *Capsule Endoscopy

Download Appeal Letters

ONLINE GRANT SUBMISSION PROGRAM

Research Grant Opportunities-
We are excited to announce CCFA has initiated an online grant submission program.  This user-friendly system will streamline the process for applicants and will help cut down the amount of time and paper required to submit an application.  Further details and appropriate links for online submission of letters of intent and research grant applications click here.

Please note; Letters of Intent (LOI) are mandatory.  The next LOI deadline is November 1, 2009.

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact us.

IBD Journal - View latest selections

Education Opportunities 1.5 FREE CNE credits available
Participate in the archive of "Interview with an Expert: Answers to Key Questions in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases" with Stephen Hanauer, MD Professor of Medicine and Clinical Pharmacology University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.

Other educational programs can be found here.

Pete Learns All About Crohn's and Colitis
The comic Pete Learns All About Crohn's and Colitis is once again available to educate your pediatric or lower literacy patients.  Order patient education materials or download factsheets.

updated 10/15/09