Children's Neuroblastoma Cancer Foundation Hosts Only Parent Medical Conference of its Kind Focused on the Childhood Cancer

CHICAGO (June 30, 2016) – The only family education and medical conference focused solely on the latest treatments and clinical trials for neuroblastoma, an aggressive childhood cancer whose primary victims are infants and toddlers, returns July 14–17 to the Westin Hotel in Lombard, Illinois. Sponsored by the Children’s Neuroblastoma Cancer Foundation with generous support from United Therapeutics Corporation, the annual conference brings families together with the country’s leading neuroblastoma researchers. Families not only learn about advanced treatments, medications and clinical trials, they gain the emotional support and camaraderie with others whose lives have been impacted by this terrible disease.

Every year, an estimated 700 children are diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a solid tumor cancer that manifests in the head, neck, chest, pelvis or abdomen. The average age at diagnosis is two, and the survival rate is 40 percent for patients in advanced stages of the disease.

Neuroblastoma is more common in newborns than leukemia, but funding from public and private resources remains in the low single digits. Pat Tallungan, president of CNCF, co-founded the organization in 2000 after her ten-year-old son, Nick, succumbed to the disease. This year is the 13th CNCF Parent Education and Medical Conference.

“Funding to find a cure and increase awareness about childhood cancers is merely a fraction of what is spent for adult cancer research,” Tallungan says. “We’ve made great strides improving survival rates and focusing attention on research to combat relapse and the after-effects of treatment. That’s largely due to the support of private sector companies like United Therapeutics Corporation and private individuals who know or have lost a child with neuroblastoma. United Therapeutics recognizes there is a void in the medical community and has stepped in to help fill it. We’re grateful for their support of our conference and our families.”

United Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical manufacturer, supports the conference in keeping with its mission to address the unmet needs of patients with life-threatening conditions. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. For more information, please visit http://cncfhope.org. To make individual donations online, click DONATE NOW and select “CNCF Conference” from the drop-down menu. Additional information can also be found on the Children’s Neuroblastoma Cancer Foundation’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.

About CNCF

Based in Bloomingdale, IL, CNCF is one of the oldest and largest organizations in the U.S. dedicated solely to neuroblastoma awareness, education and research. Founded in 2000 by parents of neuroblastoma victims, CNCF has donated more than $2 million to neuroblastoma research and clinical trials. For more information, visit cncfhope.org. @cncfhope

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