Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

My memoir, Tumor Me – The Story of My Firefighter chronicles my son’s nine-year struggle with brain cancer. Although Alex was thirty, not a youngster, when he was diagnosed, he was my child and young! He was my precious son until the end and I loved him dearly. That love is as strong as ever for I have sweet memories that help me manage the loss.

My point here is to draw attention to the fact that many individuals much younger than my son was, are forced to face trials and fears that not one of them, or their families, could possibly have bargained for when told, “It’s cancer.” When Alex was initially sent to UC Davis Medical Center for care, I was with him, right by his side even though he was a grown man. UC Davis Medical Center swarmed with ill people, but the ones who struck both Alex and me the most were the children. Especially in neurology, the children caught our attention. Many bore deep, surgical scars in their heads where incisions had been made: horseshoes, crescents, squiggly, sideways question marks, and upside down U’s. The children’s eyes were often wide, hollow, or bewildered and the faces were serious, confused, searching. Oh, a few wan smiles did surface speaking to the spirit that kept these little beings going despite challenges they could not possibly have understood. Seeing them there never became easier for me, for I knew they faced a daunting, uncertain future. Flanked by parents and armored with love, however, they did what they had to do.

Cancer for any person is formidable, but for a child whose innocence is snatched away incrementally with the first diagnosis, each new treatment, each new step forward or backward, and each new day, fate’s folly seems most cruel. Children are amazing though. They fight hard, warm hearts, turn tears into laughter, and win battles. So, this blog is for the children. I hope anyone who reads it will take a moment to make a difference in a child’s life by donating. UC Davis and UCSF, in particular have notable venues for addressing childhood cancer victims. Go online. Check them out. See how you can help.