We can never forget those children we lost due to childhood cancer and the lack of medication and advocacy that they could have given to their parents in those serious times. This childhood cancer awareness month, let’s spread awareness and prevent those newly diagnosed children with cancer stages and educate them so the wave can be prevented to take a toll.
In the United States, childhood cancer is devastating, it is comparatively rare but expected that in the next few years, one in every 285 children under 20 years of age will be diagnosed with cancer. In the United States, cancer has been the most common reason for death in adolescents.
In the past four decades, cancer researchers have propelled the advances which effectively declined the rate of deaths up to 70%. However, according to the data shared by NCI – National Cancer Institute, approximately 15590 novel cases of cancer are expected in teens under nineteen years of age as over 1780 deaths have been reported in 2021.
Types of cancers that develop usually in children
The types of cancer that appear as childhood cancers are usually different from the ones developed in adults. The types of cancers developed in early childhood are;
- Wilms tumor
- Leukemia t
- Spinal Cord and brain tumors
- Neuroblastoma
- Rhabdomyosarcoma
- Lymphoma (Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin)
- Retinoblastoma
- Bone Cancer (Ewing sarcoma and osteosarcoma)
Many other types of cancers are also common in children but many of them are rare and affect adults more than children. However, Leukemia, Neuroblastoma, and central nervous system tumors (CNS) are the most common ones in childhood cancers and account for most of the cancer cases every passing year.
“Pediatric cancer research in many ways has played a leading role in the history of cancer research,” explains John M. Maris, MD, the Giulio D’Angio Endowed Professor of pediatrics at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “Many of the early discoveries of how chemotherapy can work to cure cancer were first seen in children with cancer.”
How can you take part in childhood cancer awareness month this year?
Here are some recommendations to collaborate with the cancer survivors and make them feel loved and cared for by joining hands together this time.
Donate – Plan a gift for showing a good gesture for the cancer awareness day celebration at your locale. Your support will fuel the awareness campaigns celebrated across the nation. Plus, it paves away the creation of more effective therapies and put away the toxic and less encouraging atmosphere of survival.
As September is here, nobody should miss the chance of making a difference for children suffering from cancer at an early age. Many campaigns are launched for the cause. One of the campaigns at childrencancercause.org is committed to providing a tote bag to everyone who prefers to get a gift of $20 or more.
Take Action – There are online tools from which you can ask members of congress about the support they need and whether they are passing bills for the protection and awareness of the cause. As the authorization of the Childhood Cancer STAR Act is near its expiration, you can make comprehensive suggestions and identify the track of legislation that is currently being made.
Spread Awareness – Share the awareness through infographics and brochures you obtain from different channels through your social media and every possible means that you can adapt. Show the world that your heart is with the cancer patient kids.
Facts about Childhood cancer you must know
1 in 285 children will be affected in the US before 20
Recall your elementary schoolmates. Any of your fellow mates must be diagnosed with cancer at the age you are before they cross the second decade of their age. According to an average estimation, the population of schools in America is 473. This means, from the total strength, at least two students from every elementary school will or soon likely be affected by cancer.
On average – cancer is diagnosed in children at the age of 8
No parent would like to hear – your child is having cancer (at this young age) Think about the one that you know as your friend about 8 years of age. They would be building a love of reading and making new friends – every 8-year-old should be at school not in the hospital. It would be worse if they have to take a series of medications that eventually affect their studies and life. It is the grim picture of a student’s life suffering from childhood cancer.
An early cancer diagnosis is fairly difficult
Adults go through regular screening of cancer after which it becomes possible to catch signs of lingering cancer disease at every stage. But in childhood, there is no proper screening for children that may catch early symptoms of cancer, hence making the spread possible. Unfortunately, this promotes the disease and makes it complex to identify and motivate toxic treatment.
Only 6 drugs for childhood cancer have been approved
CEO of ACCO, Ruth Hoffman says,
“It is mind-boggling and disturbing to know that a child diagnosed with AML [acute myelogenous leukemia] today will be treated pretty much the same way that my daughter was in 1987.”
If there’s a need for a lifetime improvement in cancer survival, we would need to work relentlessly on the less toxic and mild treatments that are achievable in childhood cancer.
42 families are daily informed that their child has cancer
It is possible that your community would be having cancer patients as kids. It was projected that in 2021, 15590 adolescents will have cancer and there would be 1780 under 0-17 will die from the disease only in the United States.
If you haven’t been in contact with the ones you knew in your elementary school, picture those friends and siblings. Imagine the empty chairs, if you haven’t heard from your classmates for long. They could be so close to us and now they could be one of those 1780 individuals.
Spread awareness across communities through different mediums so we all would be able to put a stopper on this fatal disease.