Let's Help More Than 100 Children with Cancer

We wish to thank you, most sincerely, for the warmth of your hearts and for the support you provided to our ill children. Thanks to your donations, the Childhood Cancer Fund Rugutė was able to continue providing medicine, medical supplies and timely screening to Lithuanian children with oncological diseases, as well as supporting their families.

During the first three months of the last year, three hospitalized children were in need of the medicine Temodal, the supply of which, unfortunately, has been cut. Our fund purchased this medicine and ensured the continuity of the necessary treatment. Our fund was also able to purchase more long-term central venous catheters that significantly improved the psychological well-being of the sick children in treatment, and allowed them to avoid multiple insertions of the peripheral venous catheters. Families raising children with oncological diseases also received financial support to purchase groceries and medical supplies. Thanks to your donations the fund was able to cover the maintenance costs of Rugutė’s Home, where children in need and their family members were staying free of charge.

From the 28^th of May to the 3^rd of June 2011, the 10^th Week for Children with Leukemia took place in Turkey. The Turkish fund LOSEV invited two children of Rugutė, Ignas (with his mother) and Simona (they both have recovered from Leukemia), to participate in this event. Our fund covered the expenses of their trip to Turkey. Children and their mothers from many different countries shared their individual experiences and knowledge about the disease, participated in a conference on leukemia and rested at the sunny beaches of Antalya by the Mediterranean Sea.

On the 4^th of June, the Childhood Cancer Fund Rugutė and the public entity Nacionalinis kraujo centras organized the 6^th voluntary blood drive Share a Droplet, and invited everybody to donate blood for children. 30 donors donated their blood in the cozy atmosphere of Rugutė’s Home.

On the 8^th of May, three colleagues from the company Barclays in United Kingdom arrived to Lithuania and organized a challenging bike ride across Lithuania. Its purpose was not only to ride 650 km by bicycles and to establish a relationship between the two countries, but also to stop in the towns of Širvintos, Panevėžys, Radviliškis, Šiauliai, Tauragė and Kaunas, and to visit children of Rugutė living there. We sincerely thank Mr. John Gwilliams, Mr. Alan Quinlan and Mr. Nick Miles, for implementing this noble idea, for sharing the warmth of their hearts with sick children, and for raising funds for Rugutė via the GlobalGiving website.

We say our heartfelt thanks to all of you for your support. It is so good to know that you and us, together, are able to help our sick children move towards life without disease.

The Childhood Cancer Fund Rugutė team

Links:

• http://www.rugute.lt/en/

During 6 years that we are working on this project, each day we seek that all Lithuanian children, who have oncological illness, would have quality treatment system, would have innovative diagnostic methods and would have social help for minimizing physical and psychiatric pain and suffer.

From November 2010, when we have become the members of "Global Giving“, the financial support from donors gave the possibility to buy long-term indwelling central venous catheters, which are very important and useful for little patients psychic emotions during the treatment and also have let to escape moltifold eripheral venous catheter. Little girl who has got leukemia is saying that "catheter is useful because during the illness each prick is like the end of the world, more and more suffering from moltifold eripheral venous catheter. All these procedures of chemotherapies has made venous more weak, brittle, scorched. So, this long-term indwelling catheters improved very the treatment and emotional feeling. Nurses could inject medicines when I was sleeping, I haven‘t felt anything, I could move very easily“.

There were organized one young patient trip to Poland. At the nuclear diagnostic centre in Bydgoszcz (Poland) he has had the positron emission tomography (PET imaging), which gave very full-scale information about malignant cells spread and vitality. This imaging is very important for further treatment with oncological illness. Especially, because this imaging is not possible to make in Lithuania.

"Childhood Cancer Fund Rugutė“ already is working for 3 years and is first and only one project like this in Lithuania, which has taken and used the best practice from such projects in foreign countries. Practically "Childhood Cancer Fund Rugutė“ is 200 sq.m. house near by Vilnius University Children Hospital. For children and families we provide accommodation for free and other services which their need for better treatment with illness. During November, December 2010 and January 2011 we supported financially 20 families whose little members have oncological illness.

We are very thankful for every person and institution who are supporting us not only financially, but with trust, love and kindness and warm heart for every little Lithuanian patient. We are very happy that your real and open love creates warm and easier way for little patient living.

Links:

• The Childhood Cancer Fund Rugutė