Campaign vs childhood cancers underway

The Philippine Star, Thursday 7 July 2005

Each year, more than 160,000 children are diagnosed with cancer. About 90,000 of them will die of this disease.

Most childhood cancers can be cured, provided prompt and effective treatment is accessible. In industrialized countries, three out of four children now survive. But in the developing world and emerging economies, children are often diagnosed too late, or not diagnosed at all, and lack access to information and life-saving treatment. Four out of five children with cancer live in these countries. More than half of them will die.

There is a need to mobilize more resources in the struggle against this disease and to promote education and training, especially in prevention and early detection, diagnosis and treatment, so as to change individual and social patterns of behaviour.

Because every child matters, the International Union Against Cancer (UICC), in partnership with sanofi-aventis, embarks this year on a Childhood Cancer Campaign under the banner "My child matters."

The campaign consists of three main components: a call for projects; a comprehensive state-of-the-art report on childhood cancers, which will be made available to the general public on World Cancer Day, Feb. 4, 2006; and a worldwide mobilisation and awareness campaign, based on these first results, to highlight the effects of childhood cancers on children and their families.

To encourage innovative projects and the sharing of experiences, especially among developing and emerging countries, the call for projects will be launched in the following 10 countries: Bangladesh, Egypt, Honduras, Morocco, the Philippines, Senegal, Tanzania, Ukraine, Venezuela and Vietnam.

Funding of up to 50,000 euros (about P3 million) will be available for projects selected by the UICC Childhood Cancer Campaign Advisory Steering Committee.

These projects should raise awareness of the challenge of childhood cancers; strengthen prevention, early detection, and protocols of treatment; improve the quality of care and support for children living with cancer and for their families; or take into account more fully the social aspects of this disease.

Projects will be selected for funding based on the following: feasibility, providing benefits for children living with cancer and their families, and demonstrating accountability and sustainability (including possible replication of initiatives in countries with similar settings).

All institutions or organisations which demonstrate innovative and practical approaches to information, prevention, and the medical and psychosocial care of and support for children living with cancer are invited to submit a project.

This call for projects marks the official launch of UICC's World Cancer Campaign, which over the coming years will address many aspects of the fight against cancer, in response to the Charter of Paris.

Adopted in 2000 during the 2000 World Summit against Cancer for the New Millennium, the Charter of Paris called for "an invincible alliance between researchers, health care professionals, patients, government, industry and media - to fight cancer and its greatest allies, which are fear, ignorance and complacency."

Application forms may be obtained from Cheryl Ann Serrano, sanofi-aventis' corporate communications manager. For inquiries, call 859-5704. Deadline of submission is Sept. 30.