September has been selected as the month to raise awareness of various types of cancer, including malignant tumors that occur in childhood; as well as gynecological origin, thyroid and prostate cancer, leukemia (s) and lymphoma (s). Each year in the United States there are more than 1.5 million newly diagnosed Americans with any form and stage of cancer. Of these, almost 16,000 are children between the ages of 0-19 years with a mean age of 6 years at the time of diagnosis. It affects all ethnic, gender, and socioeconomic groups. Brain tumors and leukemias account for 38% of all cancers. 121 of those diagnosed do not survive and more than 40,000 children undergo cancer treatment each year. Of those treated, 60% will suffer late effects such as infertility, secondary cancers, and heart failure. Cancer is a disease that affects the person who suffers it and also the entire family group, especially when it is diagnosed in children. Many years of studies and research, as well as foundations, local and international groups have achieved goals towards the improvement of treatment alternatives directed to more specific sites as well as the quality of life of children and their families has been improved. The 5-year overall survival rate is approximately 85%.
According to the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program (seer.cancer.gov), acute lymphoblastic leukemia has a 5-year survival rate of 90% and Hodgkin's lymphoma reaches 97.2%, followed by Wills tumor at 93.1%. Other cancers localized to sites such as soft tissues, bone and joints, brain, and central nervous system, are in the 74% range. This is good news for all affected patients, their loved ones, and also all those involved in some form of disease management at any stage and presentation.
CureSearch is a national non-profit organization focused on accelerating the search for cures for childhood cancer and is one of the examples of existing entities exclusively dedicated to improving the lives of each of the 43 children diagnosed each day with some type of cancer in the US, and works closely with more than 60 pediatric hospitals nationwide. Along with CureSearch, there are a number of private and semi-private non-profit groups dedicated to contributing to all aspects of prevention, early detection and treatment, as well as support groups for patients and their families to alleviate the cancer pain.
The American Cancer Society (ACS) offers a comprehensive set of care options, which includes basic aspects of the disease, such as signs and symptoms according to the site where it occurs, its prevalence, (number of people suffering from cancer), as well as surveillance programs and the economic impact of this condition. In the same way, the ACS is a very complete source of information, including videos with topics such as radiotherapy, chemotherapy, radiation and the interactive tool. It also includes current clinical research trials and the tool to empower the patient by understanding these clinical trials.
Hospitals and universities are also actively involved and working together to find cures and innovative methods of treatment and support. We can cite some of these organizations:
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is located in Memphis, Tennessee and officially opened in February 1962. Today, it offers treatment programs for brain tumors, immunodeficiency diseases leukemia / lymphoma, sickle cell disease, blood disorders, solid tumors, and infectious diseases . It also offers teams of exceptionally trained and prepared professionals who are inclined towards outstanding technologies in different areas of health and medicine. Surgically, he specializes in complex and rare cancer surgeries, including:
• Surgery to save a limb in limb sarcomas.
• Surgeries for the preservation of vision and / or the eye in cases of retinoblastoma.
• Surgeries to eradicate solid tumors that protect vital healthy tissues, such as blood vessels, kidneys, and extremities.
• Advanced and highly complex neurosurgery for the excision of brain tumors.
Bone marrow transplantation, cancer predisposition diagnosis, radiation oncology, rehabilitation services, school programs, and clinical nutrition are just some of the services available at this center.
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is an institution affiliated with the Harvard University School of Medicine, which also offers a variety of services aimed at treating and curing cancer in children. The Jimmy Foundation, a non-profit organization affiliated with this institute, adds a service of enormous value to those affected by cancer, especially children. Founded in 1947 by Dr. Richard Farber, the institution has grown to become one of the leading centers for cancer research and treatment in the US and abroad. It currently employs about 4,000 people who support more than 400,000 patient visits per year and is involved in some 700 clinical trials. The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is internationally recognized for its involvement in research and the clinical excellence it offers to patients and their families.
To the extent that it provides advanced training to international faculty in cancer research and treatment, the Institute conducts community-based cancer prevention, detection, and control programs in the State of New England. , and maintains joint programs with other institutions affiliated with Harvard University School of Medicine, including Brigham Hospital for Women, Boston Children's Hospital, and Massachusetts General Hospital. Dana-Farber is supported by the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and the generous support of numerous foundations and individuals who contribute to individual research programs as well as the institute's clinic programs o to Jimmy's Fund, the institute's main charity, named after one of his little patients. Dana-Farber is also a federally designated Center for AIDS Research, and a founding member of the Dana-Farber / Harvard Cancer Center, a federally designated comprehensive cancer center.
For pediatric patients Dana Farber offers, among others, specialized programs for cancers arising from the nervous system such as astrocytoma, glioblastoma and meningioma, among others. All types of leukemia and lymphoma, as well as bone, lymph node and other cancers are within the scope of the center's expertise.
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) is the largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding research, finding cures, and ensuring access to treatment for blood cancer patients. Since 1949 LLS has been at the forefront of blood cancer advancements such as chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation at the forefront of specific chemotherapies and immunotherapies that are saving thousands of lives today. LLS is changing the cancer landscape with over 300 active research projects exploring different promising new avenues of research; projects that promise and that will save lives not some day, but today. Whenever we talk about cancer, we use the same expression: Someday. Someday there will be a cure. Someday we won't lose the people we love. But when is someday? With partnerships and collaborations between LLS research biotech and pharmaceutical companies, patient support services and people working for blood cancer patients everywhere, someday is today.
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) mission is to: cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease, and myeloma, and improve the quality of life for patients and their families. LLS exists to find cures and ensure access to treatments for blood cancer patients. LLS is the voice of all blood cancer patients and works to ensure access to treatment for all blood cancer patients. LLS recognizes that seeking cures is not enough. We have to ensure that patients have access to the treatments, services and providers they need to live longer and better; a healthier life. LLS is dedicated to removing barriers to care. By providing our network of advocates with a powerful voice, the policy and advocacy team drives policies and procedures that accelerate the development and approval of innovative treatments and ensure that patients have sustainable access to quality, coordinated care. Our team is committed to ensuring that patients have the right network of services and providers available to them and are protected from the high costs that limit access to life-saving treatments. LLS is the leading source of free and highly specialized blood cancer information, education and support for patients, their survivors, families, and healthcare professionals. We touch patients in their communities through our programs in the US and Canada. We stand for blood cancer survivors and their families, to help patients learn about their cancer treatments and ensure they have access to quality, affordable, and coordinated care. Bottom of
Cancer Research in Children is a national nonprofit initiative that supports the University of Minnesota's pioneering efforts in research related to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure of childhood cancer. In 1979 Katie Hageboeck, a 13-year-old girl in Wayzata, MN, was nearing the end of her 16-month battle with leukemia. Knowing she was losing the battle, she asked that the money she had been saving to buy a 10-speed bike be donated to a little-known fund by the University of Minnesota called the Children's Cancer Research Fund. Her dream was for a cure to be achieved so that the children who came after her would survive the disease. A little over a year after Katie's death, her parents and family friends organized what they thought was a one-time fundraiser to benefit this fund to honor Katie's dying wish. Thirty-two years later, the profit from this “Dawn of a Dream” continues to bring hope and last year it raised more than $ 1.5 million. The Children's Cancer Research Fund has grown from a small grassroots fundraiser to a national non-profit organization, with hundreds of thousands of individual donors, along with corporations and foundations, who have given nearly $ 100 million to pediatric hematology / oncology as well as physicians and researchers in the bone marrow and blood cell transplantation programs at the University of Minnesota. Many discoveries funded by the Children's Cancer Research Fund have revolutionized the way childhood cancer is treated around the world and helped support quality-of-life programs for pediatric cancer patients and their families. We invest in the areas of research that will have the greatest impact on finding better treatments and cures for children with cancer. These are just a few of the ways we are making progress:
• The Childhood Cancer Registry network led by one of our co-chief medical advisers is being used for 97 percent of new pediatric cancer patients, and is the model for medical registries.
• Researchers supported by this fund have been recipients of more contributions from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other grants for cord blood stem cell collection, preservation, and transplantation programs than any other institution. in the world.
• The double cord blood transplant - developed by our other medical advisor, which has dramatically increased survival rates from leukemia - in both children and adults - is known worldwide as the Minneapolis regimen. The University of Minnesota - the center we support - has performed more cord blood transplants than anywhere else in the world.
• The fund has funded the largest study of childhood cancer survivors, now numbering more than 300,000 in the US, which found that survivors were at significant risk for ongoing health problems due to their cancer treatment. Cancer. We also support one of the first clinics dedicated to the ongoing health care of childhood cancer survivors.
• In just over 10 months, researchers funded by the Children's Cancer Research Fund develop and manufacture a brain tumor vaccine that is being prepared for clinical trials. This vaccine shows promise in increasing survival rates and providing treatments with fewer side effects.
• Our researchers are isolating T cells from umbilical cord blood and then inserting a specific sequence of DNA into the T cells, improving their ability to recognize and kill leukemia and lymphoma cells.
• With the continued support of the Children's Cancer Research Fund, new discoveries can continue to contribute to the progress that has been made, and we can continue to work toward one end goal - a world free of childhood cancer.
These are just a small sample of institutions and non-profit organizations with a mission to help millions of people affected directly or indirectly by cancer.
Sources:
Children's Cancer Center Research: www.childrenscancer.org
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society: www.lls.org
American Cancer Society: www.cancer.org
The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute: www.dana-farber.org
