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SEPTEMBER IS CHILDHOOD CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

 

Each September, families, caregivers, researchers and charities around the world unite in honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

Treatment outcomes for children with cancer have made tremendous improvements OVER the past 50 years, but the reality is one in five children with cancer will still die of their disease within five years.* FOUR DIAMONDS IS ON A MISSION TO CHANGE THIS REALITY. 

You can help children and families fighting cancer by raising awareness and taking action for the kidsTM. 

Raise Awareness and Influence Change

  • Change your profile picture to a gold ribbon, which is the international symbol for childhood cancer awareness.
  • Follow Four Diamonds on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and share our photos, videos and information with your own social networks using #ChildhoodCancerAwarenessMonth and #GoGoldFTK. We would love to see your photos too!
  • Here are some sample posts to share on social media: 
    • I have joined Four Diamonds in the fight to conquer childhood cancer. Learn more at www.FourDiamonds.org #GoGoldFTK
    • Did you know that in the U.S., more than 16,000 children are diagnosed with cancer each year? Four Diamonds is working to change that. #GoGoldFTK
    • Thanks to research, there are more than 420,000 childhood cancer survivors in the U.S., with that number expected to reach 500,000 by 2020. #GoGoldFTK
    • Research saves lives, and Four Diamonds is leading the discovery of new and improved treatments and cures for kids around the world. #GoGoldFTK
  • Click here to download and print Four Diamonds posters and childhood cancer statistics. Hang these at your business, at your desk or in your classroom!
  • Register for the THON 5K in State College, Pa., on Sunday, October 21. Your registration will directly benefit Four Diamonds children and their families by covering all medical bills not paid for by insurance and by funding life-saving research. 
  • Can't make it to State College for the THON 5K? Sign up for the Virtual THON 5K and #RunWithUsFTK - any place, at any pace!
  • Purchase tickets for the THON Penn State Football Game on Saturday, November 10. A portion of the proceeds from ticket sales benefit THON.
  • Support, organize or participate in a Four Diamonds Mini-THON®! Mini-THONs are fun and inspiring events for students of all ages that encourage teamwork, leadership and creativity while empowering youth and young adults through philanthropy and community service in the fight to conquer childhood cancer. Learn more here.

 

​Tips for Changing Your Profile Picture

  • Change your profile picture to a gold ribbon, which is the international symbol for childhood cancer awareness. Click here to add a gold FTK® ribbon to your profile picture: http://twibbon.com/Support/go-gold-ftk#

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Childhood cancer Statistics

 

HOW DO CELLS BECOME CANCER CELLS?

Cells become cancer cells because of damage to DNA. DNA is in every cell and directs all its actions. 

In a normal cell, when DNA is damaged the cell either repairs the damage or the cell dies. In cancer cells, the damaged DNA is not repaired, but the cell doesn’t die like it should. Instead, this cell goes on making new cells that the body does not need. These new cells will all have the same damaged DNA as the first cell does.

  • About 15,780 children in the United States under the age of 19 will be diagnosed with cancer this year. 
  • Every three minutes, somewhere in the world a family hears the devastating words "your child has cancer."
  • Childhood cancer continues to be the most common cause of death by disease for children in the United States. 
  • About 1,250 children younger than 15 years old are expected to die from cancer this year.
  • Because of major treatment advances in recent decades, more than 80 percent of children with cancer now survive 5 years or more. 
  • Overall, this is a huge increase since the mid-1970s, when the 5-year survival rate was less than 60 percent.

How is cancer in children different from cancer in adults?

Cancer can begin when cells grow out of control. Cells in nearly any part of the body can become cancer, and can spread to other areas of the body.

The types of cancers that develop in children are often different from the types that develop in adults. Childhood cancers are often the result of DNA changes in cells that take place very early in life, sometimes even before birth. Unlike many cancers in adults, childhood cancers are not strongly linked to lifestyle or environmental risk factors.

Cancers in children are different from cancers in adults, and the tolerance to treatments is also different. 

Sources: www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-in-children; www.acco.org

#PartnersInTheFight to conquer childhood cancer
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CONTACT US

Four Diamonds
at Penn State Children's Hospital
1249 Cocoa Avenue, Suite 115
P.O. Box 852
Hershey, PA 17033-0852

717-531-6086

fourdiamondsinfo@pennstatehealth.psu.edu

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