Kashton was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in November of 2020. Doctors initially thought it was the stomach flu but finally discovered that it was ALL after three months. Currently, Kashton is on a daily chemotherapy medication and attends monthly clinic visits every month. His mom said, “throughout this entire ordeal, Kashton has been so resilient, brave, happy and strong. He understands that his chemo is the medicine that is making him better.” Kashton and his family look forward to treatment completion in 2023.
Kashton is an ambassador for ACCO’s GO GOLD® the RUN. Learn more by clicking here.
In mid September 2021, Eileen woke up with a low grade fever and complained of stomach pain and difficulty breathing. She was rushed to urgent care by her parents and diagnosed the same day with T-Cell Non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The family was shocked with the diagnosis and was immediately sad, stressed and fearful of what was to come.
Treatment started immediately with chemotherapy and is currently in remission. “Eileen’s has been fighting the good fight for 8 months now. We’ve had many ups and downs, but she always braves every single chemo, procedure, clinic visit, port access, and shots with a huge smile (after a few tears.)”
Together, we can make a difference. Donate today, “because kids can’t fight cancer alone!®”
On December 14, 2021, Walker found out that he was battling osteosarcoma after a bike injury. He wasn’t too worried because his half sister had gone through cancer treatments, and he knew that if she could get through it then he could too.
Treatment started immediately and Walker received 3 chemotherapy rounds. He also underwent a biopsy and amputation of his left leg.
Walker is currently continuing his treatment through October and getting used to his prosthetic leg. Please help ACCO in sending well wishes to Walker and his family.
Together, we can make a difference. Donate today, “because kids can’t fight cancer alone!®” DONATE ONLINE»
When Evan started demonstrating balance and speech difficulties accompanied by headaches and lethargy, his parents took notice. They took him to the pediatrician who advised them to take him to the emergency room. An on call doctor told the family that night that Evan had a brain tumor, but couldn’t give any other information. The next day, Evan was diagnosed with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma, or DIPG. “We were told he had about nine months to live.”
Treatment started immediately and to date, Evan has undergone three separate rounds of brain stem radiation, participated in two clinical trials and had a brain biopsy.
Evan loves legos and baseball, reading and spending time with friends and family. “”We are extremely grateful that Evan has responded so well to radiation. He is almost three years post diagnosis, which is not common. Evan was able to go back to school and play sports for over two years. This past fall, he started having increasing symptoms and is now on hospice care.”
Currently, Evan is stable but on hospice care. He is no longer able to walk, communicate well or eat solid foods.
UPDATE: On June 10, 2022, Evan passed away.
Donate to help kids like Evan, because kids can’t fight cancer alone!®
Brain cancers account for about 15% of pediatric cancers and are the second most common type of cancer in children. May is Brain Tumor Awareness Month and May 17 is DIPG Awareness Day.
Meet Caden, a 9 year old pineoblastoma brain tumor survivor.
In the fall of 2019, Caden started suffering from vomiting and headaches. “We thought he just had a stomach bug because he wasn’t feeling well for a few days. He woke up one morning in so much pain so we took him straight to the emergency room. The doctor immediately did a CT scan and saw a brain tumor. We were transferred to a different hospital where they got him on the schedule for his first surgery.” Caden was 7 years old when he was diagnosed with a pineoblastoma brain tumor. The diagnosis left the family shocked, sad, terrified and speechless.
During his journey, Caden had several surgeries during his journey including a full tumor resection, third ventricular bypass, biopsies, eye surgery and port placement and removal. He completed 15 days of radiation to the brain and spine and 15 days to the brain. Caden completed four cycles of chemotherapy. During treatment, COVID limited the visitors and left Caden feeling very isolated. “We, along with the rest of the world, were completely isolated. Not just isolated from our family and friends, but isolated from our home and safe place. Caden went four months without seeing his brothers. It was just awful. He would cry at night, not because he felt terrible, but because he missed his brothers. He was a great support to his friends at St. Jude.” One friend’s mother even said that Caden saved her son’s life since he too was away from siblings for a long period of time.
“Caden’s treatment is over, hopefully forever. As of right now, we travel to Memphis every four months for follow up appointments and scans.” Caden enjoys playing with friends and especially his brothers.
Donate to help kids like Caden, because kids can’t fight cancer alone!®
Brain cancers account for about 15% of pediatric cancers and are the second most common type of cancer in children. May is Brain Tumor Awareness Month. Learn more by clicking here.
Meet Haven, a brave cancer warrior that was taken too soon. Haven fought a long battle with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) for almost five years with a smile on her face and concern for people around her.
At just nine years old, Haven was experiencing fevers and swollen lymph nodes. On April 24, 2015, she was diagnosed with B-cell ALL. “We went to get blood work to see why she was having fevers and we were in utter shock hearing the word ‘leukemia,’ ” remembers Haven’s mother, Magan. Haven’s parents were fearful and heartbroken but Haven remained positive with a “let’s beat this” attitude.
Treatment started almost instantly and Haven received two and a half years of chemotherapy. She had a port placement and removal as well as a hickman placement and removal. Haven went into remission for 15 months and then relapsed again. This time, treatment consisted of four months of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant which resulted in Haven going back into remission for seven months. On December 20, 2019 Haven relapsed and sadly passed away on January 7, 2020.
Haven was very strong. When she relapsed the first time, she told her mom that ‘at least it was her and not someone who couldn’t handle it.’ One of Haven’s favorite things to do was cooking and she always wanted to feed everyone. Haven asked that her family help feed other families on the oncology floor during the holidays in honor and in memory of her. “Even on her deathbed, she was still worried about everyone else and was not scared. She was at peace knowing that her life would soon come to an end,” Magan said. Days before Haven passed she said that she was grateful that she had received the bone marrow transplant since researchers could learn from her story.
To learn more about ALL: https://www.acco.org/childhood-leukemias/
Together, we can make a difference.
Donate today because kids can’t fight cancer alone®.
About American Childhood Cancer Organization
The American Childhood Cancer Organization was founded in 1970 by parents of children and adolescents diagnosed with cancer. As the nation’s oldest and largest grassroots organization dedicated to childhood cancer, ACCO is committed to shaping policy, supporting research, raising awareness, and providing free educational resources to kids with cancer, survivors, and their families. Additionally, ACCO is the sole U.S. member of Childhood Cancer International (CCI) and has helped support more than half a million families over the past 50 years. Help make childhood cancer a national health priority because kids can’t fight cancer alone®.
For more information about how ACCO can help your family, call 855.858.2226 or visit:
Meet Naomi, a kind-hearted little girl who loves unicorns and helping people. Naomi is currently on treatment battling Pinealoblastoma, a subtype of a brain tumor and spinal cord tumor.
Red flags started to arise after Naomi collapsed in school; she didn’t even know her name. Naomi visited the emergency room several times before doctors finally took a closer look. They found a mass in her pineal region and immediately sent her to Children’s in Cincinnati. On October 3rd, Naomi and her parents were given the diagnosis of stage four pineoblastoma with metastasis in the spine. “We got the MRI results and they took us in a big room. It took my breath. I couldn’t believe it. All I wanted to do was go grab her and hold her. We were lost” her father, Kenneth, remembers.
The treatment plan for Naomi is rigorous consisting of 30 proton radiation treatments and six months of chemotherapy. October of 2019, Naomi had four brain surgeries and doctors told the family that if they got all of the cancer and it comes back, there is nothing they can do.
Naomi is a kind soul. While in the hospital, she bagged up her Halloween candy and passed it to the children that didn’t get to go trick or treating. She is working to start a teddy bear drive to donate to the hospital. She is currently undergoing chemotherapy for the next few months. Please help ACCO by sending her well wishes!
Meet Adrian, a shark and travel enthusiast that was diagnosed with Pituitary Germinoma at the age of 16.
Adrian’s symptoms started in August 2017 when he was complaining of frequent headaches accompanied by nausea and vomiting. In October 2017, an MRI was taken of his brain revealing a mass in his pituitary region which compressed his left optic nerve.
On November 10, 2017, Adrian underwent his first brain surgery to remove the top portion of his tumor however the rest of the mass was not able to be removed. The top portion of the tumor was sent to the lab revealing Intracranial Pituitary Germinoma. Just 12 days later, Adrian was sent back into brain surgery to remove built up fluid on his brain.
Adrian’s mom, Veronica said “we were already devastated seeing him come out of a brain surgery. We were so nervous, but once we heard it was actually cancer, I cannot put it into words the devastation, fear, anger and a million feelings/thoughts/emotions we experienced. As a parent, it is the most devastating thing to hear that your child has cancer.”
Adrian began his first round of chemotherapy leaving him very weak. Three weeks later, he started his second round of therapy. In total, Adrian completed four rounds of chemotherapy and followed with 21 days of radiation.
Through all of the treatments, Adrian did not complain about his pain or struggles. Cancer gave Adrian a new outlook on life and his hope is that all affected with cancer around the world are cured of cancer and can live fulfilling and happy lives.
Adrian was awarded two separate trips which ultimately brought the family closer together in their journey. On his wish trip, Adrian was able to go shark diving, cave diving, and swim with the dolphins. “It allowed us to live in the moment with one another, something that we hadn’t really done because we would always anticipate every appointment, every chemo cycle, every surgery. It was something we were always anticipating, whether it was his health, we were always worrying. It just gave us just that hope to look forward to the future and not think about those things,” explained Veronica.
Adrian is now 18, and thriving as a survivor. He is currently being monitored by oncology every three months and is on hormone replacement therapy for his pituitary gland. Please join us in sending well wishes to Adrian and his family!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – September 28, 2018 – Washington, D.C. – The American Childhood Cancer Organization (ACCO), the soleU.S. member of Childhood Cancer International (CCI) provided its overwhelming support today for the World Health Organization’s (WHO) announcement of its new global initiative to address the disparity between childhood cancer survival in low-middle versus high-income countries. The announcement came at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly’s side-meeting on childhood cancer which was organized by the Missions of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, El Salvador, the Republic of Moldova, the Kingdom of Morocco, the Republic of Philippines and the Russian Federation.
Funded through a generous donation from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer partners with national and international *stakeholders including CCI to provide leadership and technical assistance to support governments in building and sustaining high-quality childhood cancer programs.
Each year, more than 300,000 children ages birth to 19 years are diagnosed with cancer around the world. Approximately 8 in 10 of these children live in low and middle-income countries where their survival rate is often near 20%. This is in stark contrast to high-income countries, where cure rates exceed 80% for many common childhood cancers.
How urgent is this global initiative? “Childhood cancer is the number one non-communicable disease (NCD) cause of death in children globally,” said Ruth Hoffman, ACCO’s Chief Executive Officer, and President of Childhood Cancer International. “Childhood cancer has no borders. Why should childhood cancer treatments and cures? Even in the U.S. the majority of children with cancer continue to be treated with old drugs that were developed in the 1950’s, ‘60’s and 70’s. These drugs cost very little yet are too often unavailable to the majority of children with cancer in the world who happen to live in low to middle income countries. With increased access to essential childhood cancer medicines and radiation, children can be cured of their disease regardless of where they live in the world.” Ms. Hoffman will continue to represent the voice of the families of children with cancer as a member of the WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer.
Increase political commitment and capacity of countries to deliver best practices in childhood cancer diagnosis and treatment;
Support governments to develop high-quality cancer centers as well as develop standards and tools to guide the planning and implementation of interventions for early diagnosis, treatment and palliative and survivorship
care inclusive of the needs of childhood cancers;
Improve access to affordable essential child cancer medicines and technologies;
Support governments to safeguard families of children with cancer from social isolation and financial ruin as a result of cancer care;
Prioritize cancer as a child health priority and increase available funding at the national and global levels.
This initiative is founded on the World Health Assembly’s resolution Cancer Prevention and Control through an Integrated Approach (WHA70.12), which urges governments and WHO to accelerate action to achieve the targets specified in the Global Action Plan and 2030 UN Agenda for Sustainable Development to reduce premature mortality from cancer.
Actions to increase childhood cancer survival today represent effective and tangible steps as part of the broader fight against non-communicable diseases – steps that will catalyze global efforts to transform childhood cancer outcomes worldwide and ultimately save many more lives of children, now and for years to come.
*Some Stakeholders include: The International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP), Intenational society of pediatric oncologists, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), Sick Kids Hospital of Toronto, Texas Children’s Hospital, World Bank, Pediatric Oncology Rally to Transform Access to Global Essentials (PORTAGE), Friends of Cancer Patients (FOCP), Chai Clinton Health Access Initiative (CCHAI), BIO Ventures for Global Health (BVGH), Pharmaceutical Industry, International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA)
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The American Childhood Cancer Organization was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1970 by parents of children and adolescents diagnosed with cancer to advocate for their needs and support research so every child survives and leads a long and healthy life. The U.S. largest grassroots organization at the forefront of the crucial battle against childhood cancer, the ACCO is dedicated to shaping policy, supporting research, raising awareness and providing educational resources and innovative programs to children with cancer, survivors and their families. Since its inception, the ACCO has helped support more than half a million families affected by childhood cancer. ACCO now has 35 local ACCO affiliates known as Founding Hope chapters throughout the United States. www.acco.org.
Childhood Cancer International (CCI) was founded in 1994 and is recognized as the largest patient support organization for childhood cancer in the world. Comprised of 188 member organizations in 98 countries, CCI represents the voice of children and adolescents with cancer, childhood cancer survivors and their families globally. Operating as a non-State Actor in official relations with the World Health Organization (WHO), CCI engages with the WHO as well as international develo
pment organizations, policy-makers, civil society organizations, research and medical professionals to advocate for the rights of children and adolescents with cancer and prioritize childhood cancer as an integral part of the local, national and global child health and development agenda.www.childhoodcancerinternational.org
FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO SET UP AN INTERVIEW: Contact Ruth Hoffman, Chief Executive Officer, American Childhood Cancer Organization and President, Childhood Cancer International. rhoffman@acco.org; 202-262-9949.
President Obama signed a presidential memorandum on Thursday creating a White House task force on cancer, the first step in what Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. has called a “moonshot” to cure the disease, administration officials said.
The president appointed Mr. Biden to lead the panel, which will include representatives from at least 13 government agencies. The group’s first meeting will be on Monday, officials said. Read more
The presidential memorandum signed Thursday says the task force’s goal is to double the rate of progress on treatment and prevention, a benchmark Biden first introduced earlier this month in tandem with Obama’s State of the Union address. The administration hasn’t said exactly how that will be measured, but laid out areas for potential progress including better use of federal dollars to support cancer prevention, treatment and early detection.
Doctors initially thought it was the stomach flu but finally discovered that it was ALL after three months. Currently, Kashton is on a daily chemotherapy medication and attends monthly clinic visits every month. His mom said, “throughout this entire ordeal, Kashton has been so resilient, brave, happy and strong. He understands that his chemo is the medicine that is making him better.” Kashton and his family look forward to treatment completion in 2023.
Meet Adrian, a shark and travel enthusiast that was diagnosed with Pituitary Germinoma at the age of 16. 
announcement of its new global initiative to address the disparity between childhood cancer survival in low-middle versus high-income countries. The announcement came at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly’s side-meeting on childhood cancer 
