Thirty years ago a call for Health for All was made by the UN. Despite this, childhood cancer continues to be a neglected and marginalized disease.
A child with cancer is no less (nor more) important than a child with malaria, measles, tuberculosis, HIV, malnutrition, or any other life-threatening illness that disproportionately affects children in LMIC. All sick children deserve our full efforts to prolong and improve the quality of their lives.
Children with cancer should suffer less and survive more. Working together , parent organizations, professional societies, governments, institutions dedicated to global development, academic institutions, and individuals of good will, can make a difference for children who otherwise would have no hope of a future .
One parent puts the challenge this way:
The future of our children should not rest solely on the shoulders of families and friends who have lost their beloved children, nor on the kindness of strangers who feel their pain. We need our leaders to be accountable, to take bold and decisive steps to address the needs of kids with cancer. survivors and their families. They need to realize that the future of our nation depends on their willingness to invest in the health and well-being of our children NOW, before it becomes too late.