September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Each year, an average of 880 children under the age of 15 are diagnosed with cancer in Canada. Due to advances in treatment, 82 per cent of children with cancer survive at least five years after their diagnosis.1 This month, the Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario (POGO) has organized a school yard chalk campaign, in which children in schools across Ontario will write messages of encouragement and hope to their peers who are living with cancer. Childhood Cancer Awareness Month is being celebrated all over North America, and a gold ribbon, the international symbol of child cancer, can be worn in support of the cause.
In recognition of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, here is a list of relevant Cochrane Reviews:
High-does chemotherapy for children and young adults with metastatic rhabdomyosarcoma
Music for pain relief
Psychological therapy for parents of children with a longstanding or life-threatening physical illness
1Public Health Agency of Canada (9 July 2012). The Cancer in Young People in Canada Program. Chronic Diseases. Cancer. (7 September 2012). <http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/cd-mc/cancer/childhood_cancer-cancer_enfants-eng.php>
