As the country races in to provide support for victims of other, more known public tragedies and disasters, today, on behalf of over 15,000 PAC2 members, for the 50 kids diagnosed today, and for the 10 kids that die will die today, we implore you to provide this additional support for children with cancer. 

• Support research on late effects of childhood cancer treatments and health care disparities; 
• Create pilot programs to evaluate model systems of care and identify the most effective ways to ensure transitions of care between providers;
• Establish clinics to provide comprehensive, continuous, long-term follow-up services; and 
• Strengthen psychosocial care for childhood cancer survivors.

Childhood cancer statistics can be confusing.   Any statistics can hide or distort the truth, and even the statistics we trust may only tell part of the story.  

PAC2 has prepared an article that delves into some familiar childhood cancer statistics and attempts to determine the projected lifelong outcomes for a child diagnosed with childhood cancer in the United States today.  By lifelong outcomes, we mean what may happen over that child’s entire life--not just today or in five years, but 10, 20 or 30 years from now (which is as far as the data will let us project).  

The article estimates the likelihood of these four life-long outcomes for a child diagnosed with cancer:

Outcome #1   A child lives at least 30 years after diagnosis without chronic health conditions

Outcome #2   A child lives at least 30 years but faces mild to moderate chronic health conditions

Outcome #3   A child lives at least 30 years but faces life-threatening or disabling chronic health conditions

Outcome #4   A child dies

This analysis evaluates the outcomes for children diagnosed with cancer between 1970 and 1986. We HOPE that treatments have IMPROVED in the past 25 years and that the outcomes have changed since then, but this evaluates the available data. The results are shown below.

Click to read more: Childhood Cancer - Current Long-Term Outcomes