“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: Emma is a gold hero because she has been battling DIPG. An inoperable form of brain cancer for 17 months. In this time she has published a book to show kids how they can have fun and be brave fighting cancer!www.hope4emma.com” – Donna M.
“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: Lily’s son, Bryson, was at University of Missouri Women and Children Hospital in Columbia, MO for two months before being taken by DIPG. Lily made all of Bryson’s days fun and beautiful. She took the major role in Bryson’s care and brought personal touches into his care and into his room. Hospital officials have said they will be taking parent’s wishes into account more now because of Lily.” – Theresa S.
“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: Avery “brAvery” Heino was diagnosed in June 2014 with a rare form of brain cancer – Atypical Teratoid Rhabdoid Tumor (AT/RT) – just a week before her 2nd birthday. During her 10 months of treatment, she had 13 surgeries (8 of which were brain surgeries and included a tracheostomy and g-tube), over 20 rounds of high dose intense chemo therapy, a stem cell transplant and countless other procedures, infusions, etc. We basically lived inpatient in the hospital throughout those entire 10 months. Avery passed away on April 7, 2015 from complications relating to her treatment and stem cell transplant. The harsh chemo drugs left her trying to fight off many infections and caused multiple complications that caused her lungs to fail.
Avery completed our family in a way I didn’t even realize was missing. When I was pregnant with her, I worried endlessly that it wouldn’t be the same or that I wouldn’t love her like I loved Ella (my older daughter). And then she was born – I felt an immediate sense of completion and wholeness that I didn’t even realize I was missing. She was sweet and silly and crazy and snuggly. She smiled through every treatment and every procedure. I’ve never met anyone who smiles after puking! She made friends with everyone she met, even if she never said a word. She loved her sister fiercely, thought her daddy was the best and funniest guy around and her favorite place to be was in my arms. Not having her with us on Earth anymore has left an incredible hole in our life and our hearts. I’m still not sure how we’re supposed to live our whole lives without her. She is so very missed. A photo essay series was done on Avery during her last chemo treatment to help spread awareness for pediatric cancer – http://
We are dedicating Avery’s memory and life to helping advocate and fight on behalf of all the children affected by childhood cancers. No family should go through what mine did, no parents should be faced with the decisions my husband and I had to make, no one should have to bury their baby.” – Dana H.
For most children, going to school forms the backbone of their daily routine: normal, everyday activities like catching the bus, greeting their friends, completing in-school activities, and doing nightly homework are so regular that most of us don’t even think about them. For a family coping with a diagnosis of cancer, handling the daily routine of school can seem like just one more insurmountable challenge. Yet for school-age children, and especially middle- and high-school children, taking the time to think through how to approach school-related issues both during–and after–treatment will play a critical role in ensuring your child’s academic success once treatment is complete.
Whether your child can go to school intermittently during treatment or whether treatment has required a long absence from school, returning to school can be emotionally challenging for many parents, who face serious concerns about the potential for illness, whether their child has the physical or emotional stamina to cope with a long school day, and whether they will face teasing from uninformed peers. Yet at the same time, maintaining a regular school-related routine as much as possible can offer your child, and indeed your family, emotional stability and regularity during a difficult time, and will help reassure your child that they have a future that is bright and strong.
Communication is the key to your child’s educational success
Although at times dealing with school-related issues can seem like just one more “to do” on your growing list, opening an early dialogue with the educators in your child’s life will help ensure your child’s educational success both during and after treatment. The first step is alerting the school about your child’s diagnosis and treatment plan, the expected duration of the treatment, and the extent to which he or she will be absent. Notifying the principal, your child’s teacher(s), and the school counselor quickly will not only keep them informed of expected absences, it will also enable them to work with you to ensure that your child does not fall behind academically during treatment and keep the school informed about potential limitations that treatment places on their ability to complete certain types of activities or work while in school.
Of course, for many parents, ensuring that your child will not “fall behind” will be a priority. Helping your child stay up-to-date on school work will require that he or she complete assignments while at home or in the hospital. Your school should be able to provide lesson plans and assignments for completion, and may even be able to offer academic assistance in the form of tutoring for older children with more complicated workloads. Many hospitals now also offer academic support for children struggling to complete assignments while in extended hospital stays. By supporting your child and encouraging them to stay on top of their school work as much as treatment allows, you are offering him or her the best possible chance to return to school as smoothly and seamlessly as possible.
Perhaps more importantly, however, maintaining excellent communication with your child’s school will activate additional resources that may be available to help you and your child as they balance the difficult bridge between school and treatment. Most critically, of course, is ensuring that your child receives academic support, including additional assistance if necessary, to stay as close as possible to grade level. However, schools also offer emotional support as well; the school counselor can help your child cope with the emotional stresses he or she is facing. And last, but not least, the school can help guide and manage social interactions as well, working with other students to help them understand what your child is going through and ensuring that your child receives support and friendship from his or her peers as well as from school staff.
For additional information on coping with school-related issues and establishing communication with the educators in your child’s life, we encourage you to obtain a copy of Educating the Child with Cancer: A Guide for Parents and Teachers, 2nd Edition, edited by the American Childhood Cancer Foundation’s own Ruth Hoffman, and available through the ACCO (www.acco.org).
For more information about the American Childhood Cancer Organization and how we can help, call 855.858.2226 or visit:
“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: Isabel is a brave girl. As she fights cancer she still manages to keep her faith and positive attitude. She keeps her parents strong even though she is going through so much. She manages to be so full of love and maturity when most grown ups would be falling apart if they were in her place. She is an amazing child!” – Amber T.
“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: Will was diagnosed with Acute Lymphatic Leukemia T-cell on November 18, 2013, three months to the day after his fourteenth birthday. Will was a warrior even before his diagnosis dealing with several learning differences that just made school hard for him. In September 2013 he began attending The Hill School of Fort Worth and fell in love with school for the first time. Three months later everything changed. Leading up to Will’s diagnosis he was practicing hard as a member of his basketball team, he felt ill but still kept going because he loved playing the game. Often he would get physically sick while driving home from school. Will’s doctor wrote a prescription for antibiotics for a sinus infection and still no change. Tired, but never running a fever, Will went to ?” Will had an aggressive strain of Leukemia. After an induction phase of 30 days of chemo and a consolidation phase of more chemo and brain radiology Will had still not reached remission. A bone marrow transplant of a full sibling donor was his best chance at recovery. There was only a 30% chance that Will’s full blood sister would be a match and as miracles happen she was a match! Now just over one year later Will is healthy and back in school.
Will began giving back even while fighting cancer by attending a St. Baldrics event where a nurse from Cook Children’s Hospital shaved her head because Will was her inspiration and Will also appeared in a Cooks Hospital PSA for cancer awareness. As Will was getting ready to check into the bone marrow unit he found out his art work was chosen by the Honored Hero Run to represent their fall race; so six months after transplant Will ran a 10k! Will continues to speak publicly for any organization that asks. He has given two speeches for LLS this year and has more on his calendar.
Will was chosen last year by the Cook staff to serve on their Youth Advisory Committee. Will’s physical therapist was also touched by Will’s brave spirit and decided to go back to school for his Masters. Will is a good student back at the Hill School after practically missing his whole eighth grade year. One year later he finally got to play in that basketball game he never made it to because of Cancer. Will has also been named a Superstar by Ragan’s Hope
Will grew up in Colorado but has Texan roots with his late grandfather Buddy Jeffers being a member of the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame. He loves snowboarding, sledding, deep sea fishing and being a teenager.” – Nancy J.
“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: http://flipagram.com/f/
“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: My three year old son Jackson was diagnosed with ALL over a month ago. He has been brave and courageous and although he is scared he has shown how tough my little warrior is. He met another little boy in the hospital with the same condition as his and asked me why Toby has to stay in the hospital and we get to go home. I told him every child Is different. He went home in his playroom and gathered a bunch of toys and said let’s give my toys to baby Toby to cheer him up in the hospital. I cried knowing what he is going through and still managed to care about someone else.” – Jill S.
“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: My grandson, Sean Collins is a gold ribbon hero because at ten months old he was diagnosed with retinoblastoma.he went through chemo and radiation but in the end is right eye was removed and he is 15 years Cancer Free! He has never lived his life as a person with a disability because he says”he’s not disabled”.hes a kind, loving and caring person who would never hurt anyone he would give of himself for others. He is heading into his senior year in high school and planning on furthering his college education to be a pediatric oncologist, again he wants to help others.we as a family are so proud of the man that he has become and the way he has chosen to live his life for which we are blessed that God let us keep him to help make this world a better place. God bless all of these children.” – Linda P.
“Reason this person is a Gold Ribbon Hero: Layla was diagnosed with pre B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia on 2/4/15 and was immediately admitted to duke children’s hospital where she was expected to stay about 3 weeks. After her first chemo treatment she had done so well we were able to go home after only 9 days. Layla has lost her hair but not her fight, strength, and positive attitude. Layla is so brave and is able to have her port accessed without any numbing spray, cream or tears. Today 8/18/15 is Layla’s 5th birthday and she is spending it receiving chemo. even while throwing up or feeling bad after treatment she is still more worried and concerned with me and making sure everyone else is ok. She is so brave and a true hero.” – Shapel W.
