I think that if we did a survey on what is the best news that humanity could receive in the coming years, the majority would agree on the answer: the cure of cancer. And this desire is reaffirmed when we see children suffering from cancer, the first thing we ask ourselves is: why children?
Today is celebrated on World Day Against Childhood Cancer, a date to raise awareness about this disease of which more than 150,000 cases are diagnosed each year in the world. But especially, a date to honor the children who fight against cancer every day, true heroes who don't lose their smile because ultimately, they are still children.
In Europe, childhood cancer is the leading cause of death from illness until age 18. If we see the data in our country, about 1400 new cases are diagnosed every year in children under 18.
In 2017, the AECC Cancer Observatory and the National Registry of Childhood Tumors (RNTI) registered in Spain 931 cases of cancer in children under 15, of which 555 have been boys and 376 girls.
The most common type of cancer in children is acute lymphoblastic leukemia (the most frequent hematologic childhood tumor), followed by tumors of the Central Nervous System and lymphomas.
The 5-year survival rate from 0 to 14 years reaches almost 80%The data is encouraging, although it is expected to reach 100% since a single death from childhood cancer is too much.
Despite what they are going through, these little fighters never lose their smile.Childhood Cancer Warning Signs
We all believe that our children will not be touched, however nobody is exempt. That's why it's important to be alert to any signal or symptom that can tell us that something is wrong, such as:
- Persistent bone and abdomen pain
- Persistent back pain
- Fever without cause or for more than a week
- Bruises or bleeding from the nose or gums
- Tumor or ganglion growth
- Itchy body without skin lesions
- Extreme tiredness, paleness and sudden anemia
- Weightloss
- Headache and vomiting in the morning for several days
- Abdomen that grows rapidly
- Infection that does not improve
- Consult the pediatrician three or more times for the same symptomatology without having a clear diagnosis
Advances in the treatment of childhood cancer
The diagnosis of cancer in a child is devastating for the family, but little by little steps are being taken to improve the attendance of these children, and this year there are important advances in this sense:
The Child Jesus Hospital in Madrid, a world reference in pediatric oncology and the center that treats 15% of childhood tumors detected throughout the country every year, launched the first follow-up unit for childhood cancer survivors: three out of four patients with childhood cancer will suffer medical complications from treatment in the future. These children have a high risk of suffering from other diseases; specifically they have six times more chances of developing a different cancer and eight times more suffering from another type of serious illness.
We have also recently known another great news: Children with cancer admitted to the ICU may spend 24 hours with their parents something that many centers did not allow. A right of the sick child who must endure explorations, treatments and prolonged hospitalizations and needs to be able to be with his parents at all times.
On the other hand, a few months ago a small ray of hope opened in the cure of one of the main pediatric cancers. They identified the gene that would help stop one of the most common childhood cancers: acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
Hopefully that ray of hope will become light and will soon come true a cure for childhood cancer. And meanwhile, That little heroes never stop smiling.
In Babies and more | The Congress supports a historic claim to help children with cancer, overcame a leukemia thanks to an experimental treatment and his case opens the way to cure cancer with immunotherapy
