[August 21, 2014] |
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St. Baldrick's Foundation Experts Available for Comment on Childhood Cancer Awareness Month
LOS ANGELES --(Business Wire)--
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and the St.
Baldrick's Foundation, the world's largest private funder of
childhood cancer research grants, has leading pediatric oncologists,
researchers, philanthropy executives and survivors available to comment
on current issues affecting the pediatric cancer community.
The St. Baldrick's experts featured below can address the following key
issues:
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Federal Funding for Childhood Cancers Continues to Decline:
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Over the past decade, total National Cancer Institute (NCI) budget
cuts for pediatric clinical trials are now more than 30 percent
(adjusted for inflation).
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Childhood cancer research funding accounts for less than 4 percent
of all cancer research funding by the federal government.
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The pharmaceutical industry invests heavily in research for adult
cancers, but has not made a measurable investment in childhood
cancers.
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Declining Federal Support Undermines America's Research Edge and
Worsens Outlook for Childhood Cancer Research:
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China, India and European nations are increasing their investment
in medical research, while the U.S. is cutting-back - China
recently surpassed Japan in R&D investment, and is second only to
the U.S.
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This further squeezes an already tight market for childhood cancer
research, as young researchers pursue other career paths where
funding is more plentiful.
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Need for New and Improved Treatments:
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Childhood cancer is the number one disease killer of children in
the U.S. The average number of years of life lost to cancer for
kids is 71 years, compared to 15 years for adults.
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More than 80 percent of survivors will suffer from severe or
life-thretening conditions as a result of the very treatment that
saved their life.
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Incredibly, a few childhood cancers have cure rates over 90
percent, while others still have survival rates at or just above
zero.
Experts available for comment:
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Kathleen Ruddy, CEO, St. Baldrick's Foundation, a
volunteer-driven charity committed to funding the most promising
research to find cures and better treatments for all childhood cancers.
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Charles Chamness, Chairman of the St. Baldrick's Board of Directors
and Father of Joey, a 17-year-old childhood cancer survivor. As a
St. Baldrick's volunteer event organizer in 2005, he became committed
to the Foundation's mission when his son Joey was being treated for
osteosarcoma.
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Amy Bucher, St. Baldrick's Foundation Board Member, lost her
daughter, Arden, to cancer in 2008. Since then, Amy has become an
advocate for finding more effective, less toxic treatments for kids
with cancer and chairs the St. Baldrick's advocacy committee.
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Robert Arceci, M.D., Ph.D., St. Baldrick's Foundation Scientific
Advisors Chair and Board Member. Director of the Children's Cancer
and Blood Disorders Division; Director of the Ronald A. Matricaria
Institute of Molecular Medicine at Phoenix Children's Hospital.
St. Baldrick's can also connect media with local childhood cancer
survivors and families to discuss the importance of Childhood Cancer
Awareness Month as well as share their first-hand experiences.
This summer, St. Baldrick's announced funding of more than $24.7 million
for new, innovative childhood cancer research projects. There are many
visual opportunities to build out stories about St. Baldrick's during
September. We can have you attend a signature St. Baldrick's head-shaving
event, visit the lab of a St.
Baldrick's funded researcher or meet with a St.
Baldrick's Honored Family.
About St. Baldrick's Foundation
The St. Baldrick's Foundation is a volunteer-driven charity committed to
funding the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers
and give survivors long and healthy lives. St. Baldrick's coordinates
its signature head-shaving events worldwide where participants collect
pledges to shave their heads in solidarity with kids with cancer,
raising money to fund research. Since 2005, St. Baldrick's has awarded
more than $152 million to support lifesaving research, making the
Foundation the largest private funder of childhood cancer research
grants. St. Baldrick's funds are granted to some of the most brilliant
childhood cancer research experts in the world and to younger
professionals who will be the experts of tomorrow. Funds awarded also
enable hundreds of local institutions to participate in national
pediatric cancer clinical trials, and the new International Scholar
grants train researchers to work in developing countries. For more
information about the St. Baldrick's Foundation please call
1.888.899.BALD or visit www.StBaldricks.org.
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