Childhood Cancer 'Awareness' Month

So some of you may know from years past what September means to me and so many others.  September, is the start of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.  For anyone who is on my Facebook list you will see lots of gold, lots of facts, lots of photos about Childhood Cancer.  I will talk about my sons journey with Neuroblastoma that he was diagnosed with when he was just barely 3 months old.

July 31st 2013 marked four years since Keegan was diagnosed with the 4th most popular Childhood Cancer, out of roughly 12 MAJOR types (there are more than 12 types though)!  Yet Neuroblastoma is often called a 'rare' Childhood Cancer.  It is far from rare! Every day I see where another child has died from Neuroblastoma, or has just been diagnosed, or has relapsed for this awful cancer.  (They are ALL awful, but having dealt with this one with my son I have the most dislike for it)!

Today, being only the 3rd day in to Childhood Cancer Awareness Month I was at the grocery store with my family.  Literally the moment we walked into the store pink ribbons are instantly in our face.

Now do NOT misunderstand me on this part, as I am NOT out to offend anyone or make anyone mad. 

It is NOT the breast cancer warriors, survivors, angels that I dislike.  I think they are VERY strong and amazing individuals who have my support, and prayers and love.  Come October I'll sport some pink just for them.  I cheer them on at our local Relay for Life and I know many women who have had breast cancer or who have lost someone very dear to them from breast cancer.  It's an awful cancer, as they all are.  I am VERY happy with the advancements in diagnosis, and treatment that have come for breast cancer.  It has been a long time coming and I'm glad it's helped so many. 

HOWEVER...what I DO have issue with is the massive amounts of PINK wash that are everywhere.  Pink ribbons plastered on everything.  You see it ever day, we've almost become numb to it.  Pink ribbons on your light bulbs, your Swifter sweeper, your children's toys, your yogurt, cereal, clothes, shoes, notebooks, you name it, the likelihood of it having a pink ribbon on it is very high.  Do you really think all of that money is going to benefit people with breast cancer?  VERY unlikely. 

I think by now MOST people know the biggest name in Breast Cancer, and how they spend more of their time paying their own employees, and paying off lawyers to sue every small cancer group for daring to say the words "for a cure" (even though their are HUNDREDS and THOUSANDS of things out there that NEED A CURE, and not just cancers!! With a phrase THAT vague you can't own it. 

I do my best to avoid buying anything with a pink ribbon on it, and I don't do it out of spite because I have some kind of grudge against breast cancer survivors/warriors etc.  I do it because I do not want to contribute to the continued falsehood of it all. 

Cancer families (from most of what I've seen) support one another in each others fights.  Regardless of the type of cancer or your age I've found that they are all very supportive of one another.  They aren't out to compete against one another. 

We met through our local WIC office an amazing woman who was diagnosed with breast cancer.  That sweet woman would always ask how my son was doing with his cancer (before I even knew she had cancer herself)! She never ONCE made it about herself, she was more worried about a small child who was fighting cancer. Once I discovered she was also fighting cancer, I still make sure I find her and talk to her every chance I can to ask her how she is doing and let her know we are still praying for her, and after 3 years she is still praying for my son.  That's been the theme of things from everyone we've met through our local Relay For Life as well.  They are wonderful people that I adore and respect, and even THEY get tired of all of the pink wash and think that it is time for CHILDREN to be allowed to step up into the main light and take some MUCH needed attention in the cancer world. 

Kids fight VERY real cancers.  Infact, since a lot of childhood cancer symptoms mimic other child hood illnesses they are often treated for other sicknesses and by the time it is discovered they have cancer, it is often too late or their fight is made much more intense by the extended time before diagnosis.  Most moms, if their child has an odd bump, bruise, temp, seizure, etc...anything out of the ordinary they rush their kids to the hospital.  Relying on the doctor to know what is wrong with their child.  A lot of pediatricians or family doctors are not trained or kept up to date on what to look for when it comes to Childhood Cancers, so it can go undiagnosed. 

A lot of adults are often too busy to go to the doctor to get their check ups, and will often put it off and put it off.  Either because they don't WANT to know and feel ignorance is bliss, or because life gets in the way.  They are busy moms, or dads or grand parents.  They are living life, raising kids, working etc and just find it difficult to get in and get that odd lump or bruise or mole checked out.  I know this isn't always the case, but it is true for many people.  I myself am guilty of not getting myself to the doctor on a regular basis like I should!

When it comes to our children we are MUCH more hurried to get them in to see a doctor than we are ourselves (at least in general anyway).  Yet the kids are STILL not getting diagnosed with cancer in time. It is still often times advanced cancer. 

Children are using cancer treatments that are nearly 30 years old because no new treatments FOR children have been developed.  So adult chemo's are being used on children.  A child's body is NOT like an adults.  Their hormones are different, their little bodies are still growing and developing and changing.  The damage that those adult chemo's have on their bodies is spectacular. 

Often times the treatment or side affects from the treatment is what actually kills the child, not the cancer itself.  Either a severe infection kicks in and the child's body is not strong enough to fight it, or the chemo or radiation has caused their heart or liver/kidney's to function so poorly that the child just cannot survive. 

Surgery's can leave children disabled for the rest of their lives.  Whether it be brain injuries from numerous surgeries, learning disorders, the amputation of a limb, heart/kidney/liver problems for the rest of their lives, hearing problems, or the inability to have children when they are adults themselves.  Not to mention that they have a higher risk of developing a secondary cancer later on in life, and the ever looming threat of relapsing with the original cancer. 

The average age for children to die from cancer is (if I remember correctly don't quote me on this) 8 years old.  These children have often been fighting cancer for at least HALF of their lives.  8 years is not a lot of time to live life.  They've not gotten to go to school much in that time, making friends is hard, getting a chance to play outside and be a normal child is difficult, their relationship with their siblings can also be drastically affected as well. These children are also forced to grow up a lot quicker than any child should.  Often asking life and death questions at very young ages and having a grasp of understanding about life that would blow many adults away. 

Cancer isn't fair. It doesn't play nice.  It doesn't care if you are a mom, dad, grandparent, cousin, or whatever.  Cancer doesn't care if you are young or old.  Cancer doesn't care if you are healthy or not, it doesn't care if you've EVER had a history of any cancer in your family or not.  Doesn't matter.  Cancer will strike who it likes when it wants.  Cancer doesn't usually play by the rules either.  No one persons cancer is going to be the same as someone else's.  Our bodies are different so our cancer will be different even if it is in the exact same location and stage.  There is no rhyme or reason to cancer.

Yet some cancers get more attention than others.  They get the funding, they get the research, the new advancements in technology and treatments.  Too many people think "cure one, cure them all"  no.  That is far from true! Yes of course an advancement in the fight against cancer is amazing, but remember every cancer is so different that it is impossible to say if that new treatment would help any other cancers.

It is sad to read time after time, parents who are forced to bring their child home just a few months after diagnosis.  They get to watch their child slowly whither away and become less and less of the child they once knew.  They get to watch  their child suffer, helplessly watching, knowing there is NOTHING they can do to save their child because there are NO other options.  No hope.  It's the end of the road.  Their child will die. 

Why?  Because there was no funding to research their child's cancer.  No one cared enough to wonder why this cancer did the things it did.  As a parent you want to be able to take away your child's pain. To fix any problem they have and to make it all go away.  Just to see them smile, to hear their life.  To feel their hugs and sweet kisses.  Unfortunately...parents cannot fight their child's cancer for them.  They can help their child by advocating, by fighting for awareness, fighting for research to be done.  We raise our voices UNITED for the children.  We activate and take action and do our best to get attention from the world...but it isn't enough.  Our children are still dying.  We aren't loud enough, yet.  We still aren't being heard.  Not the way we need to be.  We are trying to save our children. 

If it were your child, wouldn't you do whatever it took, anything to save your child's life?  Would you walk to the end of the world to find a cure for your child?  Would you pray and research and follow every lead you could to help give your child a fighting chance?  That's all we want.  That's what we do.  We don't JUST do it for our children, we do it for all of the children.  Everywhere.  Every day. 

Mae