Let's Help More Than 100 Children with Cancer

Report (August, September, October and November, 2013)

Childhood Cancer Fund Rugute continues to support families with children that have been diagnosed with oncological diseases. During the months of August, September, October and November of 2013, the Fund provided both monthly and non-recurring charity of 20.000,00 Lt to the families that had addressed their financial needs in their requests of support. The charity that the Fund provided to these families eased their financial burdens and, at the same time, ensured better physical and psychological well-being of the young cancer patients.

Following the doctor’s (Children Oncohematology Unit of Kaunas Clinics) request, in order to administer cancer treatment for a girl that has been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor, the Fund purchased medicine Ixoten 50 mg N50. The total cost of this medicine was 4.930,23 Lt.

In the past four months, Rugute provided crucial medical equipment and other necessary items to the two major hospitals in Lithuania that treat childhood cancer patients:

• infusion systems (450 items) and transfusion systems (50 items) that are used to administer medications, physiological fluids and glucose solutions intravenously. Total amount: 2.541,00 Lt;
• long-term central venous catheters (6 items) and needles AIG Surecan G20 20 mm (90 items). Total amount: 5.887,86 Lt.

The Fund continues its successful project, Rugute’s Home, the only facility in Lithuania that provides temporary shelter to the young cancer patients and their family members.

On the 30th of November, 2013, the Fund celebrated its 9th birthday and invited everybody to attend the 11th voluntary blood drive, Share a Droplet. The voluntary blood drive Share a Droplet takes place at Rugute’s Home twice a year. During the 11^th voluntary blood drive, 38 donors gave blood.

The team of Childhood Cancer Fund Rugute wishes to kindly thank all of its donors on GlobalGiving, for their contribution in making a better world for the sick children of Lithuania. We highly appreciate your help!

The team of Childhood Cancer Fund Rugute is happy to provide the kind donors of GlobalGiving with a report on what has been done in the last several months, thanks to their generous donations.

Childhood Cancer Fund Rugute continues to support families with children that have been diagnosed with oncological diseases. During the months of April, May, June and July of 2013, the Fund provided both monthly and non-recurring charity of 22.000,00 Lt to the families that had addressed their financial needs in their requests of support. The families were entitled to use the charity money to purchase necessary medical care and food products, and to cover traveling expenses and other costs that they had to cover due to their children’s diseases. The money that the Fund provided to these families eased their financial burdens and, at the same time, ensured better physical and psychological well-being of the little cancer patients.

Rugute continues the work that allows achieving one of its most important goals: to improve treatment possibilities and hospital conditions for Lithuanian childhood cancer patients.

During the last several months, the Fund purchased some necessary medication for the young oncohematology patients:

• Following the doctor’s (Children Oncohematology Unit of Kaunas Clinics) request, in order to continue the effective cancer treatment for a girl that has been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor, the Fund purchased 14 quantities of medicine Temozolomide 100 mg N5 and 19 quantities of medicine Temozolomide 20 mg N5. The total cost of this medicine was 6699,81 Lt;
• The doctors needed our Fund’s assistance in the treatment of one new cancer patient and their request was to purchase medicine for the first three courses of the treatment. The Fund purchased 35 quantities of Temozolomide Teva 100 mg and Temozolomide Teva 20 mg. The total cost of this medicine was 8599,85 Lt.
• Following the doctor’s request, the Fund also purchased a quantity of the medicine Xeloda, for a boy whose disease continuously reoccurs during the course of treatment. The cost of this medicine was 1605,70 Lt.

On the 24th–31st of May, 2013, the young cancer survivor Diana and her mother participated at the International Week for Children with Leukaemia in Turkey. Every two years, the Turkish charity fund LOSEV invites childhood leukaemia survivors and their mothers from various countries to come to Turkey, to spend fun time together, and to share their personal experiences in their successful fight with leukaemia. Childhood Cancer Fund Rugute has created a close connection with the LOSEV fund in 2006, and has maintained a beautiful relationship with it since then. Thanks to the kind donors of GlobalGiving, Rugute was able to finance the trip to this wonderful event for Diana and her mother. Both of them returned home with lots of great memories.

On the 28^th of July, Childhood Cancer Fund Rugute organized its yearly event The Island of Friends for the 8^th time in a row. This special event brought over a hundred of families together: children and their family members spent an entire day of fun, being free of worries and uncertainty. The happy day at „The Island of Friends“ offered all kinds of entertainment: live music, fun performances, yummy food and unforgettable interactions (painting on water, segway rides etc.) for children and their parents. Being at The Island of Friends, families shared the joy of the moment and were able to take their mind off their child’s disease. The costs of the event were covered by Fund Rugute. The donations our Fund received via GlobalGiving, helped to make this event a success.

Rugute was also able to cover the maintenance costs of Rugute’s Home, the only facility in Lithuania that provides temporary shelter to the young cancer patients and their family members, free of charge. This facility is very important to the families that live far away from the hospital, and is especially appreciated by the young cancer patients for its cozy and playful home environment.

Rugute has always helped to ensure that a certain type and amount of blood is always available to the children who need blood transfusions. On the 25^th of May, Fund Rugute and the public entity Nacionalinis kraujo centras organized the 10^th voluntary blood drive Share a Droplet, and invited everybody to donate blood for the sick children. 25 donors donated their blood in the cozy atmosphere of Rugute’s Home. Since this was the 10^th (anniversary) blood drive, we were proud to know that our blood donors had already donated blood for more than 500 times!

On the 8^th of May and on the 15^th of June, two charity concerts Musical Wish took place in the beautiful concert halls of Vilnius and Kaunas cities. The guests of both concerts helped raising funds to support children with oncological diseases.

On the 18^th of May, a group of Rugute’s friends from United Kingdom started the 3^rd charity bike ride in Lithuania Ride for Rugute 2013. This time it was attended by lots of enthusiastic cyclists who contributed to raising funds for young cancer patients, and to increasing childhood cancer awareness by their sincere and demanding efforts on their bicycles. During this wonderful event, a part of the funds was raised via GlobalGiving. We give our most sincere thanks to all the daring cyclists for taking the challenge for the third time, and for raising funds for Rugute!

Every time we look back, we see the change in the lives of the children with oncological diseases, and we know that we would have not done all this without the help we received via GlobalGiving. Thanks to all of the kind people who donate money to our organization via GlobalGiving, more than a hundred families receive assistance in their uneasy fight with malignant diseases. Thank you for your contributions: they make the sick children’s lives better!