ABOUT KIDS CANCER CARE
Every year in Alberta, about 240 children are diagnosed with cancer. What follows are months, often years, of treatment, fear and uncertainty. Kids Cancer Care strives to ease the pain and suffering of these children and their families, whether that means rekindling lost childhoods at Camp Kindle, rebuilding strength through exercise therapy, restoring confidence and hope through education support and scholarships or permanently eliminating the disease through new research and hospital programs. While the overall survival rate is now 82%, one in five Canadian children still do not survive the disease. For those who do survive, the disease lasts a lifetime. Childhood cancer survivors live with at least one treatment-related chronic or life-threatening health condition. These conditions grow worse with age and take an enormous toll on the survivor, the family and our health care system. And yet, childhood cancer research receives only 7% of all cancer research funding in Canada. Together, we can change that. At Kids Cancer Care, we believe in the resilience of the human spirit and the power of community. We believe it is possible to change the course of childhood cancer in our lifetime, but we need your help to chart the way.
You can help find new cures for kids with cancer
“Clinical trials have improved childhood cancer survival from 20% to 80% over the last 50 years.”
~ Dr. Greg Guilcher, Alberta Children’s Hospital
OUR COMMITMENT
With your support, by 2027, Kids Cancer Care will invest $2.5 million in children’s cancer research and clinical trials at the Alberta Children’s Hospital and University of Calgary.
This investment will
1. Improve access to clinical trials for children with high-risk cancers;
2. Fund two post-doctoral research fellowships;
3. Support psycho-social research; and
4. Provide granting competitions for researchers.
THE NEED
Clinical trials are essential to advancing research and treatment protocols, but unlike adult cancer trials, children’s cancer trials must rely heavily on philanthropy. Although it takes an enormous toll, childhood cancer is a rare disease and offers drug and biotechnology companies little potential for return on investment. And yet, clinical trials are a critical step in developing new therapies that save young lives.
“The weakest link in research for childhood cancer drugs, and the greatest threat to continued improvement in outcomes for children with cancer is pediatric drug discovery.”
— Dr. Peter C. Adamson, Global Head, Oncology Development & Pediatric Innovation, Sanofi
Only 7% of Canada’s cancer research funding goes to children’s cancer research. With your support, Kids Cancer Care is helping to change this. Your support will help the PHOENIX team at the Alberta Children’s Hospital and University of Calgary double the number of pediatric cancer clinical trials available for children.
The children who will most benefit from new trials and novel therapies are those battling
1. Rare cancers with no standard treatments;
2. Cancers that have spread or recurred; and
3. Cancers with a poor prognosis at diagnosis.
The PHOENIX team envisions a future where every child in need of a new therapy or clinical trial can access one.
Thank you for supporting our vision.