National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

September serves as National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month which honors the more than 40,000 children who are currently being treated in the United States as well as an estimated 270,000 childhood cancer survivors.

Pediatric Cancer is still the leading cause of death from disease among U.S. children over one year of age.  Cancer kills more children than cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, AIDS, asthma and juvenile diabetes combined.  More than 18,000 children under the age of 19 in the United States are diagnosed with cancer annually. 

Imagine how hard it would be to hear the words, "Your child has cancer." Imagine watching hopelessly as your child cries out in pain from yet another round of chemotherapy, spinal tap or surgery.  Imagine losing your child to a disease which can and should be cured. No child should ever have to endure such pain and misery.  It is impossible to think about what a child with cancer suffers throughout treatment and, if he or she survives, the effects of the treatment on life afterwards.

Yet so often pediatric cancer is a disease you never hear about let alone talk about.  Often the thought of a child battling this disease falls on deaf ears.  While, we recognize September as National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month we should also recognize that little efforts and resources are being applied to end the horrors of this disease. 

The Hugs for Brady Foundation (HFB) was created in memory of a courageous baby; Brady Michael Wells who died from a rare form of leukemia.  The sole purpose of HFB is to raise awareness and funding to help kids battling cancer.  Currently we are working diligently to raise the money needed to fund a pediatric hematology/oncology fellowship program at the Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital in New Brunswick, NJ and we will not stop until we accomplish this mission. 

For Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and the 40,000 kids currently battling cancer, you can help! Something as small as telling your friends and family about childhood cancer and the need to raise funds and awareness would be a great start! You can also participate by donating blood, platelets, time and of course money.  Your individual help is what will make a difference in the lives of kids with cancer, it’s really that simple.

For information regarding Hugs for Brady, please visit our website at; www.hugsforbrady.org.  The Hugs for Brady Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit New Jersey corporation.