CureSearch for Children’s Cancer Walk is June 4

Olivia Crowley, daughter of Steve Crowley and Cynthia Van Lenten

My wife, Cynthia Van Lenten, and I are walking in memory of our daughter, Olivia, who lost her struggle with cancer when she was ten years old. Krissy and Mark Gallagher are walking with their four-year-old son, Austin, who is a cancer survivor. Stacey Brown-Walker and Chris Walker are walking with Caleb, age six, who is also a survivor.

These and other Cleveland Heights residents will be walking on June 4 because they have learned that, while cancer is a horrible disease at any age, childhood cancer is particularly underfunded. Consider the following:

• Besides accidents, cancer is the leading cause of death in children, more than all other childhood diseases combined. Yet drug companies invest next to nothing on research into children’s cancer; they simply see no profit in it. As an article in the Plain Dealer recently reported, certain drugs needed to treat childhood leukemia are in short supply because drug companies don’t find them profitable.
• The National Cancer Institute (NCI) spends less than four percent of its budget on children’s cancer, and its budget is being cut by ten percent.
• Half of all chemotherapies for children are more than 25 years old.
• The incidence of pediatric cancer has increased by about 30 percent over the last several years, and no one knows why.
• The good news is that cure rates have increased dramatically, rising from 30 percent to 78 percent in the last three decades. Yet 74 percent of childhood cancer survivors suffer from chronic illnesses, and 40 percent from life-threatening illnesses.

The CureSearch Walk funds the research of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), which is the world’s largest childhood cancer research collaborative, treating more than 90 percent of children with cancer at over 200 hospitals in the United States, including Rainbow Babies, the Cleveland Clinic, and Akron Children’s Hospital. Instead of focusing on one hospital, COG sets up the clinical trials and the standards of care used throughout the country. This collaborative work is the main reason that cure rates have increased so significantly. Yet, COG continues to struggle for funding.

At the walk there will also be a bone marrow drive and Flashes of Hope (flashesofhope.org) will take pictures of families affected by children's cancer.

The CureSearch walk will take place on Saturday June 4, from 9–11 a.m., at Wade Oval in University Circle. To register or contribute, go to www.curesearchwalk.org/neohio. Contributions are welcome even after June 4.