How Fluid Flow Shapes the Brain: Cancer and Cognitive Function

About this Seminar

Humans are about 60 percent water — so where is it, and why does it matter for cancer, cognitive function, and other conditions? In this talk, Jenny Munson, director of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute’s Cancer Research Center — Roanoke, describes how the Munson Lab maps the currents that move between our cells, known as interstitial fluid flow. In aggressive brain cancers like glioblastoma, these flows create preferred routes for tumor cells to invade and can limit how drugs reach them. By linking data with experiments in the lab and studies in patients, her team is uncovering how fluid’s movement between cells shapes the tumor microenvironment and how adjusting therapies to those dynamics could improve outcomes. Because fluid flow also supports normal tissue function, the lab is translating its methods to immunity, aging, women’s health, and Alzheimer’s disease. You’ll leave with a new picture of how fluid movement can change the course of disease and patient outcomes.

Additional Details

This is a free event hosted by Dr. Michael Friedlander and the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. For more information, please call 540-526-2059.

About Maury Strauss

Maury Strauss was a longtime community benefactor and businessman who supported biomedical research with the goal of energizing the local economy and improving quality of life in our neighborhoods and around the world. In order to ensure the continued success of Roanoke’s biomedical research enterprise, as well as the free public seminars, Mr. Strauss made a generous gift to the series. He passed away in June 2024 at age 99. 

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Your generous support of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute's rigorous biomedical research enterprise makes a difference for our faculty, students, and patients. Every donation helps accelerate the pace of new discoveries to help patients with cancer, neurological disorders, heart disease, and even rare genetic disorders. Private donations fast-track our progress. 

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