OCTOBER 23, 2015BOSTON HARBOR HOTEL

A Night withthe Arts

for FTD

Inaugural Gala & Art Showto benefit

The Frontotemporal Disorders UnitMassachusetts General Hospital

www.ftd-boston.org

MGHFTDunit@partners.org

Walk on the Dark Side by Sybil Sermos

From Care To

Cure

Photography by Joshua Touster

Welcome from Brad Dickerson, MD

October 23, 2015

I am delighted to welcome you to the first MGH FTD Unit Gala, “A Night With the Arts for FTD.” We are inspired tonight by Kemon and Sybil Sermos and others like them who continue to strive to maintain art as a central force in their lives – and as a magnet to galvanize our community – despite the challenges posed by FTD and related brain disorders. In addition to the inspiration we will enjoy from joining together for this special evening, we hope that tonight will help raise funds for new and expanding initiatives in our programs of FTD Care Today and FTD Research for a Cure.

The first prong of our work focuses on trying to provide the best FTD Care Today. We feel good about what is being done now, but we always strive to expand and improve. We are delighted that Katie Brandt officially joined our team in summer 2015 as a Community Resource Specialist and look forward to her efforts to develop more training courses, support resources, and other connections to services in the community that can help provide essential physical and psychological lifelines to patients and families living with these conditions today. Aphasia therapy, music therapy, and specialized patient/caregiver support groups are only some of the new initiatives we are planning to launch with seed funds from events like this one.

The second prong of our work aims to advance FTD Research for a Cure. I am tremendously excited about the possibilities and opportunities in our research portfolio today. I will show images tonight of some of the pathologies of FTD in the brain—seen for the first time in living people—and of models of these conditions in the lab. We desperately need these new tools and technologies which are the bricks and mortar of the foundation for the development of new treatments. We have seen time and time again how seed funds for new pilot projects like those generated tonight are able to kickstart larger programs that will be supported by major medical foundations and the National Institutes of Health.

I can’t thank you enough for participating in tonight’s mission to raise the bar in our efforts – as the largest FTD clinical and research program in New England – to improve FTD Care Today and expand FTD Research for a Cure.

Bradford C. Dickerson, MDDirector, MGH Frontotemporal Disorders UnitAssociate Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

“I’m confident that if we all continue to dedicate ourselves to working together as a team, we will move the research forward toward a cure.”

– Brad Dickerson, MD

Frontotemporal Disorders Unit Staff

Joel Salinas, MD is a member of the FTD Unit through his research and clinical fellowship in Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital. His research focuses on investigating psychosocial predictors and modifiable risk factors of age-related neurologic disease and its sequelae using large epidemiologic cohorts. His long-term goal is to develop and deploy interdisciplinary strategies to prevent the development of devastating chronic brain disease.

Barbara Hawley-Maxam, LSW, is Social Worker for the MGH Memory Disorders Unit and the MGH Frontotemporal Dementia Unit. She provides emotional support to patient’s family members and directs families and patients to community resources. She also co-leads an Alzheimer’s Caregivers’ Support Group.

Clinical FellowsJaya Padmanabhan, MD is a fellow in the McLean / MGH Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry program. She works with Dr. Dickerson in the MGH FTD Unit. Her research interests include neuropsychiatric genetics, imaging, and psychosis in the setting of neurological disease. She is a graduate of the Harvard Longwood psychiatry residency training program and Harvard Medical School.

Alessandro Biffi, MD is a part of the FTD Unit through his fellowship in Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is currently conducting NIH-funded research investigating the role of vascular risk factors in cognitive impairment and psychiatric disorders. Dr. Biffi also has a special interest in precision medicine aspects of prevention and treatment in cognitive neurology, including personalized risk determination and integrated use of genomics, imaging and advanced statistical techniques.

Ryan Darby, MD is a Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychiatry fellow who sees patients at the FTD Unit at MGH. He is interested in the diagnosis and management of social and moral behavioral abnormalities in FTD patients and is currently working with Dr. Dickerson to develop novel behavioral and neuroimaging assessments of social behavior. He also is interested in the application of non-invasive brain stimulation to measure differences in neural plasticity in FTD and other neurological patients.

Janet Sherman, Ph.D is Chief Neuropsychologist at Massachusetts General Hospital and Clinical Director of the MGH Psychology Assessment Center. She is a specialist in adult and child clinical neuropsychology. She has specific interests in language disorders and in the neurocognitive changes and behavioral changes associated with neurodegenerative disorders as well as in other acquired neurological disorders. Dr. Sherman serves as the neuropsychologist for the MGH Memory Disorders Unit and the MGH Frontotemporal Dementia Unit.

Featured Artists – Kemon & Sybil Sermos

View Kemon & Sybil’s work in tonight’s art show. A portion of the proceeds from tonight’s sales will be donated by Kemon & Sybil to the MGH Frontotemporal Disorders Unit.

Find out more about how you can become a voice for FTD and the research happening in the Dickerson Lab by emailing Katherine.Brandt@mgh.harvard.edu

Featured Artists – Kemon & Sybil Sermos

Kemon and Sybil Sermos are experts at exploring new cultures and navigating unchartered territory. “We have traveled to 65 countries and six continents together. Our art has allowed us to travel and our travel has inspired our art,” says Sybil. Their home is a bright mosaic of that inspiration. Beautiful paintings, photo albums bursting with stories and a wall tiled with photos of grown children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren are the illustrations of a life well lived.

As their story continued to unfold, a new journey began when Kemon was diagnosed with Frontotemporal Degeneration in 2012. With no set itinerary and little knowledge of the landscape, Kemon and Sybil set out to find an expert guide and found themselves at the Frontotemporal Disorders Unit at MGH. They were now members of a new community, ready to learn and contribute.

Early in 2015, the idea for a gala and art show to benefit the FTD Unit was born when Kemon and Sybil spoke to Dr. Dickerson during a clinic appointment. The seasoned travelers saw and opportunity to forge a new path for other donors and families who wanted to make a difference and a course was set. When asked why fundraising for Dr. Dickerson was so important, Sybil remarked “How many artists in their lifetime have the opportunity that we have had to find someone like Dr. Dickerson? To find someone who has impressed us and is doing work that is important to us, work that we can contribute to? We are inspired to do more, and that is a wonderful thing.”

Tonight’s art sale showcases works by Kemon and Sybil. A portion of the proceeds will directly benefit the FTD Unit. Each sale made with the intention of igniting hope for today’s care and tomorrow’s cure. Sybil says “whatever joy this brings to the person who buys it, they also help in the cause to Dr. Dickerson. It is called giving back. That is what this is all about.”

(L to R) Megan Quimby, Katie Brandt, Brad Dickerson, Christina Caso, Barbara Hawley-Maxam, Sara Makaretz, Michael Stepanovic, Bedia Samanci, Alexander Zaitsev

From Care To Cure

Frontotemporal Disorders Unit Staff

Affiliated Faculty

Diane Lucente, MS, CGC is a Senior Research and Clinical Genetic Counselor in the MGH Center for Human Genetic Research. She provides clinical care to patients and families with neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental conditions. She is involved in research that focuses on determining the underlying causes for many neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative conditions.

Megan Quimby, MS, CCC-SLP is a speech-language pathologist at MGH who provides evaluation and treatment services that focus on facilitating functional communication to patients with progressive language disorders. She helps run a PPA Education and Support Group and conducts research on progressive language disorders in Dr. Bradford Dickerson’s Laboratory at the MGH FTD Unit.

Daisy Hochberg, MS, CCC-SLP is a speech-language pathologist at MGH who provides evaluation and treatment services that aim to facilitate functional communication for patients and their families with progressive language disorders. She has worked in Dr. Bradford Dickerson’s Laboratory at the MGH FTD Unit since 2007 and her research has focused on the development of a scale to measure the presence and severity of language symptoms in this patient population.

Stephen J. Haggarty, Ph.D is an Associate Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, an Associate Neuroscientist at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Director of the Chemical Neurobiology Laboratory within the MGH Center for Human Genetic Research. Of particular interest to Dr. Haggarty’s laboratory has been the generation, characterization, and use of patient-derived stem cell models for understanding the molecular and cellular basis of FTD. In collaboration with members of the MGH FTD Unit and others, Dr. Haggarty’s efforts are contributing to the discovery of targeted therapeutics for the treatment and prevention of FTD.

Elena Ratti, MD, MMSc is an Instructor in Neurology at Harvard Medical School and within the MGH Neurology Department. She is affiliated with the MGH Neurological Clinical Research Institute (NCRI) and the MGH Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Unit and the FTD Unit Clinics. Her research is aimed at improving the understanding of the ALS-FTD continuum longitudinally with clinical and neuroimaging assessments. Dr. Ratti was the 2014 Dr. Anne B. Young Neuroscience Translational Medicine Fellow, a joint training program between Biogen and MGH Neurology.

“I treasure the opportunity to work one-on-one with each person with FTD to assess the ways the illness affects that individual and their family, and to try to treat the problems.”

– Brad Dickerson, MD

Inaugural Gala Program

Cocktail HourArt Show OpensSilent Auction OpensClassical Music Performance

Welcome and Introductory RemarksBrad Hyman, MD, PhDDirector, Massachusetts Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center

Dinner

Tribute to Kemon & Sybil SermosCynthia RozziSermos Family Friend

Introductory VideoKatie Brandt, MMCommunity Resource Specialist, Frontotemporal Disorders Unit

Live Auction: Premier Auction Items

Frontotemporal Disorders Unit Presentation: From Care To CureBrad Dickerson, MDDirector, Frontotemporal Disorders Unit

Live Auction: Fund A Need

Music & DancingMusical Performance by “After Hours”

Please note the Silent Auction will close at 9:30PM

Closing Remarks

“Dickerson lab’s work is important for guiding patients and caregivers in navigating an otherwise confusing and very inadequately understood disease.” - Michael Brickhouse, Research Assistant

Application DeveloperAlexander Zaitsev

Community Resource SpecialistKatie Brandt

Graduate StudentsClaire CordellaLee Richardson

Neurology ResidentBedia Samanci

Patient Services CoordinatorNordia McBean

Postdoctoral FellowsJessica CollinsChenjie Xia

Research AssistantsMichael BrickhouseChristina CasoKatie KellySara MakaretzMichael Stepanovic

FTD Unit Staff & Trainees

Bradford Dickerson, MD is the Director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Frontotemporal Disorders (FTD) Unit and Neuroimaging Lab. He is also a staff behavioral neurologist in the MGH Memory Disorders Unit and co-investigator on the Neuroimaging Core of the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. He is an Associate Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Dickerson runs a busy weekly clinic caring for patients with various forms of cognitive impairment and dementia, as well as providing training for clinical and research fellows. His research employs quantitative structural and functional neuroimaging techniques to investigate dementias as well as normal aging.

Bradley T. Hyman, MD, PhD directs the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Unit at the MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease (www.mghmind.org), with the goal of understanding the neuropathophysiologic and genetic factors that underlie dementia. His laboratory studies the anatomical and molecular basis of dementia in Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. Dr. Hyman is the recipient of the Metropolitan Life Award, the Potamkin Prize, a National Institute on Aging MERIT award, and an Alzheimer Association Pioneer Award. He has been the Director of the Massachusetts Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center since 2006.

Frontotemporal Disorders Unit Staff

Mark Eldaief, MD is board certified in both Neurology and Psychiatry. He went on to do a research fellowship in Cognitive Neurology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and now serves on the staff of the MGH FTD Unit. Clinically, Dr. Eldaief is most interested in the behavioral variant of Frontotemporal Dementia. His research focuses on intrinsic brain activity as captured by resting-state fMRI. He also uses multimodal techniques, including the combination of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and PET scanning to study frontal brain networks involved in mood regulation.

Scott McGinnis, MD is a board-certified neurologist and instructor in Neurology at Harvard Medical School with expertise in evaluation and treatment of patients with cognitive impairment and dementia. His research interests include FTD, atypical presentations of Alzheimer disease and non-Alzheimer neurodegenerative dementias. He is an investigator in the Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment at BWH and the MGH FTD Unit.

FTD Unit Faculty

Special Guest

David Perez, MD is a dual trained staff neurologist and psychiatrist in the MGH FTD Clinic. Dr. Perez has a clinical interest in neuropsychiatric features of FTD and works closely with members of the Dickerson Laboratory to investigate brain-symptom relationships in FTD using neuroimaging techniques.

Silver Sponsor

F O R U M P H A R M A . C O M

Silver Sponsor

This gift is given in love and support of Barbara and the extraordinary person that she was and continues to be. We are

thankful for the help, support, guidance, and love shown from Katie Brandt for the endless hours she has given to all of us in the FTD community. This is a horrible disease but the friendships we have

built and especially the “corner club” in our monthly support group led by Amy, Barbara, John, and Katie has helped us to still be able

to laugh and live in the face of FTD.

The Frontotemporal Disorders Unit at MGH

Our Frontotemporal Disorders (FTD) Unit is a comprehensive clinical-research unit committed to sophisticated, compassionate, interdisciplinary care of patients. We are focused on Frontotemporal Degeneration and related disorders including Behavioral Variant FTD, Primary Progressive Aphasia, Semantic Dementia, Corticobasal Degeneration Syndrome, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, Posterior Cortical Atrophy, atypical forms of Alzheimer’s and FTD-ALS.

Since our inception in 2007, we have been proud to offer a wide array of services including neurology, speech pathology, neuropsychology, psychiatry, social work, genetic counseling and testing services, and caregiver support. Our staff and clinicians are dedicated to fighting back against FTD by improving the quality of our patient’s lives and partnering with families to engage in cutting edge research. By working together, we can hope to one day live in a world where FTD can be cured and prevented.

www.ftd-boston.org

Bronze Sponsors

The Kearney FamilyGiven With Love in Honor of Rosemary from John, Connor, Noreen & Bridget

The Khouri FamilyIn Honor of our Husband, Father, Grandfather, Brother, Friend

Donald E. Khouri

The Landau FamilyIn Loving Memory of Sheldon Landau,

Beloved Husband, Father, Poppy and Friend

The Millerick FamilyGiven With Love & Support for Joanne from Bob, Lindsay & Lauren

The Radosta FamilyGiven With Love for our Husband, Dad, Grampy and Friend, John

In his words, “I love you, you’re so beautiful!”

The Family of Jerry ReganBeloved Husband, Dad, and Friend. You fought the fight with

courage, dignity, and humor. We’re honored to help find a cure.

The White FamilyIn support of Dennis, our Husband, Dad, and Grumpa.

We Love You!

Friends of the FTD Unit

Lorrie Gibris-ParajeckasBrandt & Marie Henderson

The MGH FTD Unit is committed to providing the best care for people with Frontotemporal Disorders

A Special Thank You to Tonight’s Volunteers

Harvard College Alzheimer’s Buddies Program

Harvard College Alzheimer’s Buddies (HCAB) is a student organization responding to the profound isolation and social

disengagement experienced by people in the intermediate-to-late-stages of Alzheimer’s Disease. Students build meaningful

connections with dementia residents during weekly one-on-one visits. Students focus on what is still present in their buddies

and improving the life that they have despite limitations. HCAB volunteers currently visit patients at the Hebrew Senior Life

Rehabilitation Center.

To Learn More, Go To: www.alzheimersbuddies.org

Inaugural Gala Planning Committee Members

Amy Almeida

Beth Almeida

Katie Brandt

Christina Caso

Brad Dickerson

Liz Elefante

Brandt Henderson

Katie Kelly

Myra Landau

Christy Regan

Cynthia Rozzi

Sybil Sermos

This dynamo team brought us all together for tonight’s celebration with amazing energy, commitment and dedication. The FTD community is grateful for all of the time and love you have put into this year’s event.

Follow us on Facebook to view photos and video from tonight and get info for next year’s gala!

www.facebook.com/ftdunitgala

A Special Thank You to Tonight’s Woodwind Trio

Aline Benoit – ClarinetBoston Pops Esplanade Orchestra

Andrea Bonsignore – Oboe Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra

Suzanne Nelsen – BassoonBoston Symphony Orchestra

Tonight’s performance donated in honor of their beloved friend and fellow musician Laura Ahlbeck

Live & Silent Auction Donors

Scott AlmeidaArnould Gallery & FrameryBall Square Café SomervilleAline BenoitBits and PiecesBoston Center for Oral HealthBoston Pops OrchestraThe Boston Red SoxBeverly Brody BarisanoSilvana BrunoThe Butterfl y PlaceThe Capital GrilleGwindale CassidyBarbara ColburnSusan CulpoBrenda CurryDanversport Yacht ClubJean DeliberoMarilyn DwyerEagle PhotographyFaux DesignsFiamma Glass Studio

Nancy & Craig GibsonThe Grafton Group Pam GreeneJanet Lambert-Moore The Late Show With Stephen ColbertLyndell’s BakeryLegal Seafoods, LLCSolveig Makaretz, TroskoFrank MassabniThe Neighborhood RestaurantNorth Shore Music TheatreOverlook CAREMarie PetersRaso’s Grille & PizzeriaThe Regan FamilyRitz Carlton Hotels, Boston CommonRoland’s JewelryRuth SchollerKemon & Sybil SermosAva SimioneSimon Z Designs

Supporting Donors

Andrew’s Bakery Constance ArchambaultNancy BarryFrank & Chris BoyerBridgewater Print & CopyBarbara CaldaronePhilip CaplinRobert CiccarielloMary & Brian Day Michael DayPaul & Pat DowdMichelle GriffinAlan Holbrook

Home HelpersDebbie HowellCarrie Ingraham Gregory Kerwood Love Is Out ThereMad Dog ConstructionKatherine MendzelaPatricia MoranBarbara NeufeldRichard RantiJack SloyanSarah Tipton

With grateful appreciation for the ongoing support from our donors