Cancer care for 100 children in the Philippines

Dear friends,

Thank you for your continued support! We'd like to update you on our progress and our plans for 2015 and beyond.

In 2009 when we began working on the island of Mindanao, less than 30% of children with cancer survived. Today, thanks to project lead Dr. Mae Dolendo and her incredible staff, 60% of children survive the most commonly diagnosed cancers. One of Dr. Dolendo's first patients, Nober, has celebrated four years cancer free. Nober was one-and-a-half years old when he was diagnosed with a cancer of the soft tissue. When he arrived at the hospital in Davao City he was unable to walk because the tumor he had was compressing his spinal column. He received chemotherapy treatment for one-year and is now a healthy five-year-old. Thanks to your support, we can provide treatment and follow-up care for patients like Nober.

Over the last 5 years World Child Cancer, in partnership with the National University Hospital Singapore and St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, has enabled Dr. Dolendo a dedicated and skilled physician at the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC), to:

• Establish 4 satellite Pediatric Oncology satellite centers around the island of Mindanao. This network of satellite Pediatric Oncology centers is known as the Mindanao Pediatric Cancer Care Network (MPCCN).
• Improve the training for doctors and nurses and support staff with regards to diagnosis, treatment, and curative/palliative care of children with cancer at the SPMC hub hospital.
• Address the treatment abandonment issue and raise community awareness of the early signs and symptoms of childhood cancer.
• Establish an on-line childhood cancer database that not only provides a more reliable picture of the number of patients, types of cancer and improved survival rates; but also enables medical staff to track treatment and ensure long-term patient follow

Last month we committed to funding our project in the Philippines for an additional 5 years. Great progress has been made, but more children like Nober need our help to be able to access cancer treatment where they live. Having the satellite network enables our project to reach more children over a wider geographical area; these children would not be able to access the main hospital due to transportation issues and remoteness of where they live.

With your help, many patients have received life-saving treatment of the past year. However, the increase in the number of patients accessing treatment - a very positive development - must be matched by increased resources. The team needs your help: can you please donate to train more nurses and doctors, subsidize the cost of chemotherapy drugs and treatment costs at our satellite centers?

You can also help by sharing our project page with your friends, family, and coworkers: http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/cancer-care-for-50-children-in-the-philippines/

Thank you for partnering with us and allowing us to continue to help children in the Philippines. Please contact me at leann.fickes@worldchildcancer.us if you have any questions or would like more information - we're always happy to hear from you.

Happy holidays and best wishes, 

The World Child Cancer USA Team