Good evening.
Thank you to all of you who wished me a Happy Birthday, here and on Facebook. It was a good day. I pretty much cleaned house and did laundry most of the day, but the downstairs looks great! It looks the best it has looked in a long time. Actually, Bryon and I did most of it over the weekend, I just had some 'finishing up' that needed to be done. Then Jeremy, Lucy, and Jennifer all came over for dinner~~~we had BBQ'd burgers! They were yummy. I wanted to go to Chili's because every September they donate all the proceeds to St. Jude (and it seems to fall on my birthday every year), but we just couldn't afford it. It was nice to be home, though. Rachel made me a coconut cake, and it is soooo yummy!! It was really nice to be together, all 7 of us. Before long, it is going to be 8 of us!! I can't wait!!
David is doing the same. He is still plugging away with school. He is so funny. He is taking German, and when he has his Elluminate classes (that is like a lecture, it is audio) the teacher makes him (and all the students in turn) speak into their microphones so he can hear them speak. David always says, "ohhh, I don't want to do this!" But EVERY time he speaks, the teacher gets so excited because he says David does it perfect! He has never had to correct David on pronouncuation or tell him he used any words incorrectly. I am so proud of him. He just cracks me up. He hates speaking it, but he does it perfectly! Jeremy speaks fluent French, and I guess David is destined to speak German!! He is doing ok in his other classes, too. He just still has some memory issues, and I guess he always will. But he still tries his best, and that is all we have ever asked of any of our children. Like I said many times before; school just used to come pretty easy to him. He went from getting almost all A's (just a couple B's), to struggling for C's!! Please continue to pray for him this school year. Thank you.
Yesterday I got a call from Oakland Children's Hospital~~~David's next scans are on October 11th. We have to check in at 8:30am, so we will be going to Oakland the day before, after church. I am so glad that Connie understands how we feel come scan time. She said that no matter how far 'out' from chemo we get, the scanxiety doesn't get any easier! As a matter of fact, it hit me really hard this time. As I was writing it on the calendar I got instantly nauseous and couldn't stop crying!! I don't know why, other that the fact that I get scared! Connie told us that David will never be in 'remission' and that they will keep a close eye on him as he is at high risk of relapse. We try to just not think about it until scan time comes around. Then it knocks up the side of the head!! Please pray for our peace as we wait this 2 weeks. Then when we get the results I will let you know.
Thanks for visiting. That is about all that is happening on the Koury Cancer front! You all have a great evening. God bless you all. We love you. {{hugs}}
Kristi and the Koury Klan
“Each day that pediatric cancer research goes under-funded, the road to discovering new treatments and cures become longer, and more children are put at risk,” said Gregory Reaman, M.D., Chairman of the Children's Oncology Group
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Cancer Moms
I belong to a special group of women
My friends and I have an amazing bond.
We never wanted to be in this group,
Yet we are in, for life.
Maybe we have met, maybe we haven’t,
Yet our love for each other is boundless.
We know the pain the other one feels,
And we share our victories small or huge.
Words like chemo, IV, Zofran , bald heads
Are always parts of our conversations,
As well as roidrage, tears, and meltdowns…
We always know where the closest puke bucket is ,
We can hold it in one hand and if necessary,
Swallow the sandwich the other hand was holding.
We can drive to the hospital ,
Park in the dark parking garage
Make our way thru the halls of the hospital
And to the appropriate floor,
Settle in a room, turn the TV on,
Give instructions to the head nurse,
Silence loud beeping IV pumps,
Direct a wagon AND an IV pole
To the playroom without hitting anything.
Make our way back to the correct room.
And all this, mind you,
With our eyes closed at any given time.
We know how to draw blood from lines
Sticking out of our kids' chests.
We can hold them down with one hand,
While a nasogastric tube is inserted in their little nose,
And be on the phone with their dads at the same time.
We can live for days on hospital food,
And on maybe only one meal a day .
We know the names of up to 20 different drugs,
Their purpose, dosage and time to be taken.
We are always on call, 24 hours a day ,
Seven days a week.
We are used to not always looking our best,
Hard to do with only a few hours of sleep.
Make up , hair styling, skirts are words of the past .
We have become addicted to texting ,
hospital, clinic, home, wherever…
We talk sometimes at all hours of the night ,
We know we can count on someone to be up.
Then for one of us, the world stops .
She has to walk away, broken.
The job is over, but the fight is on.
Remember, I said we were in this forever.
We are friends, sisters, temporary nurses,
We are each others rock, each others punching bag,
We listen, we vent, we cry, we laugh together .
We share our lives and our deaths
We share our pain and our victories.
We are strong, but not by choice ,
Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose,
But never are we defeated.
We are not nurses.
We are not doctors.
We are cancer moms…
I wanted to post this again, as a reminder to all. We belong to this special group for the rest of our lives. None of want, or chose, to be part of this group, but we are all glad that we are there for each other. I love all my fellow 'cancer moms.' They are my family!
As September is drawing to a close, I already see a LOT of pink out there. Where is the GOLD? I would like to say it is crowded out by the pink; but I just never saw the GOLD. We talked to people about what September is, and they were clueless!!! Very sad. Maybe someday the GOLD will evoke as much passion as the pink; I pray it does. The children are our future!! We let them all die, or suffer long-term effects of cancer, and we won't have to worry about adults getting cancer~~~there won't be enough!! *sigh*
I guess I am not in a real good mood today. We had to watch our next-door neighbors walk away from their house yesterday. Not by choice, they were foreclosed on. Breaks my heart. They are in their mid-seventies (I think), and the sweetest people. It is just so sad. We have lived next to them the whole 10 years we have been here!! We are really going to miss him. We will keep in touch, but it just won't be the same. Please pray for Jack and Marsha as they try to start over, especially at their age. Thanks.
I don't know how McKenna is doing at this point. I just pray that she is staying as 'healthy' as possible. I pray her biological mother is not taking her to any more hospitals (worst place ever) or casino restaurants. To answer some of you, her website is www.caringbridge.org/visit/mckennamitchell. She is a beautiful child. Please pray that she is healthy enough to start her next round of chemo on the 28th. Thank you so much.
Thank you for visiting and checking up on David. Have a good weekend. God bless you all. We love you. {{hugs}}
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Whether their children are in remission, cured, or still in treatment, parents of kids with cancer never really relax. Your mind tells you if it happened once, it could happen again.
I belong to a special group of women
My friends and I have an amazing bond.
We never wanted to be in this group,
Yet we are in, for life.
Maybe we have met, maybe we haven’t,
Yet our love for each other is boundless.
We know the pain the other one feels,
And we share our victories small or huge.
Words like chemo, IV, Zofran , bald heads
Are always parts of our conversations,
As well as roidrage, tears, and meltdowns…
We always know where the closest puke bucket is ,
We can hold it in one hand and if necessary,
Swallow the sandwich the other hand was holding.
We can drive to the hospital ,
Park in the dark parking garage
Make our way thru the halls of the hospital
And to the appropriate floor,
Settle in a room, turn the TV on,
Give instructions to the head nurse,
Silence loud beeping IV pumps,
Direct a wagon AND an IV pole
To the playroom without hitting anything.
Make our way back to the correct room.
And all this, mind you,
With our eyes closed at any given time.
We know how to draw blood from lines
Sticking out of our kids' chests.
We can hold them down with one hand,
While a nasogastric tube is inserted in their little nose,
And be on the phone with their dads at the same time.
We can live for days on hospital food,
And on maybe only one meal a day .
We know the names of up to 20 different drugs,
Their purpose, dosage and time to be taken.
We are always on call, 24 hours a day ,
Seven days a week.
We are used to not always looking our best,
Hard to do with only a few hours of sleep.
Make up , hair styling, skirts are words of the past .
We have become addicted to texting ,
hospital, clinic, home, wherever…
We talk sometimes at all hours of the night ,
We know we can count on someone to be up.
Then for one of us, the world stops .
She has to walk away, broken.
The job is over, but the fight is on.
Remember, I said we were in this forever.
We are friends, sisters, temporary nurses,
We are each others rock, each others punching bag,
We listen, we vent, we cry, we laugh together .
We share our lives and our deaths
We share our pain and our victories.
We are strong, but not by choice ,
Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose,
But never are we defeated.
We are not nurses.
We are not doctors.
We are cancer moms…
I wanted to post this again, as a reminder to all. We belong to this special group for the rest of our lives. None of want, or chose, to be part of this group, but we are all glad that we are there for each other. I love all my fellow 'cancer moms.' They are my family!
As September is drawing to a close, I already see a LOT of pink out there. Where is the GOLD? I would like to say it is crowded out by the pink; but I just never saw the GOLD. We talked to people about what September is, and they were clueless!!! Very sad. Maybe someday the GOLD will evoke as much passion as the pink; I pray it does. The children are our future!! We let them all die, or suffer long-term effects of cancer, and we won't have to worry about adults getting cancer~~~there won't be enough!! *sigh*
I guess I am not in a real good mood today. We had to watch our next-door neighbors walk away from their house yesterday. Not by choice, they were foreclosed on. Breaks my heart. They are in their mid-seventies (I think), and the sweetest people. It is just so sad. We have lived next to them the whole 10 years we have been here!! We are really going to miss him. We will keep in touch, but it just won't be the same. Please pray for Jack and Marsha as they try to start over, especially at their age. Thanks.
I don't know how McKenna is doing at this point. I just pray that she is staying as 'healthy' as possible. I pray her biological mother is not taking her to any more hospitals (worst place ever) or casino restaurants. To answer some of you, her website is www.caringbridge.org/visit/mckennamitchell. She is a beautiful child. Please pray that she is healthy enough to start her next round of chemo on the 28th. Thank you so much.
Thank you for visiting and checking up on David. Have a good weekend. God bless you all. We love you. {{hugs}}
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Whether their children are in remission, cured, or still in treatment, parents of kids with cancer never really relax. Your mind tells you if it happened once, it could happen again.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Good evening.
Happy Fall, everyone. Today is the first full day of Fall, and it was a beautiful day. The only thing is; it is going to be an 'Indian Summer' coming up. Yuck!! On Monday and Tuesday it is supposed to be close to 90 degrees!!! Arrggghhh! Oh well. I guess we will just have to turn the cooler back on. Bummer. I have enjoyed having the fresh air and the windows open. Typical for Northern Nevada.
Today was kind of a busy day. I only had sweet Emilee this morning, David was sad about that. After she left I made David lunch and then I had to go to the DMV to get my driver's license renewed. I haven't had to do that for 8 years! I got an extension 4 years ago, so this year I had to get a new one; it expires on Monday. It didn't take too long to renew it, and I got to see my wonderful son, Jeremy!! Then I came home and David finished school and got ready for Bible Study. Then he went to Bible Study and had a great time. Of course he didn't eat there, so he ate when he got home. Bryon and I always eat when we get home, so David ate with us. I had put Quilters Soup in the crock pot this morning, so it was waiting for us when we got home. It was a pretty good day.
I have a prayer request. Please pray for McKenna. I have told you about her, she is the 14-year-old step daughter of a woman Jeremy works with. She has Ewing's Sarcoma, and is being treated at Oakland Children's Hospital. Well, her biological mother doesn't seem to understand how serious this is. She is taking McKenna out in public when McKenna is neutropenic. That means her counts are VERY low, and she has no infection fighting ability. That is when she should be in the house, around NOBODY! Or, at the very least, wear a mask. Please pray for God's protection on this child; that she will stay as healthy as possible and won't end up with an infection. Also, her mouth sores are pretty bad, please pray that they will heal and McKenna can be out of pain. Thank you so much for your prayers. Her step mom is very worried about her. It is hard to watch someone you love go through what these children go through. It is also hard to watch someone you love be 'compromised' like McKenna is being. Please pray for Roxanne and Todd, too. Thank you so very much.
Thanks for visiting. Have a good evening, God bless you all. We love you. <><
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Cancer is like a roadtrip. You begin your journey knowing the destination, but do not know what's in store. Detours, pot holes, exciting adventures around every turn! But you still drive on!
Happy Fall, everyone. Today is the first full day of Fall, and it was a beautiful day. The only thing is; it is going to be an 'Indian Summer' coming up. Yuck!! On Monday and Tuesday it is supposed to be close to 90 degrees!!! Arrggghhh! Oh well. I guess we will just have to turn the cooler back on. Bummer. I have enjoyed having the fresh air and the windows open. Typical for Northern Nevada.
Today was kind of a busy day. I only had sweet Emilee this morning, David was sad about that. After she left I made David lunch and then I had to go to the DMV to get my driver's license renewed. I haven't had to do that for 8 years! I got an extension 4 years ago, so this year I had to get a new one; it expires on Monday. It didn't take too long to renew it, and I got to see my wonderful son, Jeremy!! Then I came home and David finished school and got ready for Bible Study. Then he went to Bible Study and had a great time. Of course he didn't eat there, so he ate when he got home. Bryon and I always eat when we get home, so David ate with us. I had put Quilters Soup in the crock pot this morning, so it was waiting for us when we got home. It was a pretty good day.
I have a prayer request. Please pray for McKenna. I have told you about her, she is the 14-year-old step daughter of a woman Jeremy works with. She has Ewing's Sarcoma, and is being treated at Oakland Children's Hospital. Well, her biological mother doesn't seem to understand how serious this is. She is taking McKenna out in public when McKenna is neutropenic. That means her counts are VERY low, and she has no infection fighting ability. That is when she should be in the house, around NOBODY! Or, at the very least, wear a mask. Please pray for God's protection on this child; that she will stay as healthy as possible and won't end up with an infection. Also, her mouth sores are pretty bad, please pray that they will heal and McKenna can be out of pain. Thank you so much for your prayers. Her step mom is very worried about her. It is hard to watch someone you love go through what these children go through. It is also hard to watch someone you love be 'compromised' like McKenna is being. Please pray for Roxanne and Todd, too. Thank you so very much.
Thanks for visiting. Have a good evening, God bless you all. We love you. <><
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Cancer is like a roadtrip. You begin your journey knowing the destination, but do not know what's in store. Detours, pot holes, exciting adventures around every turn! But you still drive on!
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Good evening.
Sorry I haven't updated sooner; it's just been rather busy.
David is doing ok. He is suffering pretty badly with allergies; as are Bryon and I. We are all allergic to the rabbit brush that grows quite prolific around here! I think some people let it grow in their yards (like down the street from us) because they think they are pretty yellow flowers on a bush. We just need a good freeze for a few nights, and the rabbit brush will die. We have been close, like 34 degrees, but just not close enough! The allergies are the only thing I hate about Fall. Well, they start in late Summer, and go into Fall. We can't wait until it freezes!!
School is going ok for David. He is spending a lot of time studying, and we are so proud of his effort. Like I said in the past; it is difficult for us to watch him struggle with school, when school used to come pretty easy for him. But he will make it, he is such a trooper!
David is really enjoying Bible Study. They serve dinner before Bible Study starts, but he doesn't eat~~~surprise, surprise!! One of the leaders even commented that he doesn't eat; and we said, "Yep, that's a problem we are working on!" But he usually does eat something when we get home. So far I have been able to go with Bryon down to Gardnerville to take David to Bible Study. We have to stay there the whole 2+ hours; we can't afford to go home and then come back again. So we just walk around Walgreen's or Rite-Aid, or whatever to kill time. I am so glad that David enjoys going to Bible Study. It is good for him. He loves the fellowship with the other kids.
September is almost over~~~have you heard anything about Childhood Cancer Awareness? The only commercial I have seen is from Hyundai. All the stores are already putting all the pink breast cancer stuff out!! Yup, they crowd out the children!! Very frustrating. Take a good look at the pie chart I put on this site. I hope you are all spreading the word about Childhood Cancer Awareness. I pray for a cure!
Thank you for visiting and checking in on David. God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Every Child's Smile is Beautiful; The Smile of a Child With Cancer is Inspirational.
Sorry I haven't updated sooner; it's just been rather busy.
David is doing ok. He is suffering pretty badly with allergies; as are Bryon and I. We are all allergic to the rabbit brush that grows quite prolific around here! I think some people let it grow in their yards (like down the street from us) because they think they are pretty yellow flowers on a bush. We just need a good freeze for a few nights, and the rabbit brush will die. We have been close, like 34 degrees, but just not close enough! The allergies are the only thing I hate about Fall. Well, they start in late Summer, and go into Fall. We can't wait until it freezes!!
School is going ok for David. He is spending a lot of time studying, and we are so proud of his effort. Like I said in the past; it is difficult for us to watch him struggle with school, when school used to come pretty easy for him. But he will make it, he is such a trooper!
David is really enjoying Bible Study. They serve dinner before Bible Study starts, but he doesn't eat~~~surprise, surprise!! One of the leaders even commented that he doesn't eat; and we said, "Yep, that's a problem we are working on!" But he usually does eat something when we get home. So far I have been able to go with Bryon down to Gardnerville to take David to Bible Study. We have to stay there the whole 2+ hours; we can't afford to go home and then come back again. So we just walk around Walgreen's or Rite-Aid, or whatever to kill time. I am so glad that David enjoys going to Bible Study. It is good for him. He loves the fellowship with the other kids.
September is almost over~~~have you heard anything about Childhood Cancer Awareness? The only commercial I have seen is from Hyundai. All the stores are already putting all the pink breast cancer stuff out!! Yup, they crowd out the children!! Very frustrating. Take a good look at the pie chart I put on this site. I hope you are all spreading the word about Childhood Cancer Awareness. I pray for a cure!
Thank you for visiting and checking in on David. God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Every Child's Smile is Beautiful; The Smile of a Child With Cancer is Inspirational.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Good evening.
T.G.I.F.!! This has been a week, that's for sure. David is doing well is school, so far. He is right on track and is not behind! Yay! For the first time in 3 years! He actually started on time this year, and hopefully he will stay on schedule. He is not looking at any surgeries during this school year, for the first time in 3 years. Of course he will still have scans, oncology Dr. visits, and surgeon Dr. visits during the year, but no surgeries until next summer!! Woo-Hoo!! It feels great to say that. He has had multiple surgeries every year since he was diagnosed, and that helped contribute to him getting behind. I am so happy that his Senior year of High School will be surgery-free. Prayerfully, that is. We are going to plan for that, anyway.
So far my dishwasher is still working, and hopefully it will stay that way. My washing machine got fixed yesterday, so today I did laundry. I am so happy to be able to do laundry again. I sure didn't like the $145+ it took to be able to do laundry again, but that is life. At least all my appliances are working again. I hope I didn't 'jinx' anything by saying that, ha-ha.
Please continue to pray for my daughter, Rachel. She was able to get most of the money together (she still needs more for food and souvies); but now there is a hang-up with her passport. I had an official copy of her birth certificate from California that she used to apply for her passport. Well, she sent everything in over 2 months ago (she is leaving Oct. 31), and yesterday she received a notice in the mail that her birth certificate wasn't acceptable. So, to make a long story short, she is jumping through all the hoops now to get her passport. Please pray that it comes in time. Thanks.
We still have 3 kittens to get rid of~~~any takers? They are still in the spare room, and I want them gone so I can fix up the spare room! We had to spend the money to get the mama fixed, but it wasn't too bad. It was just over $160 for an office visit, the spaying, the medicine, all her shots, and the suture removal in 2 weeks. It was more money than we wanted to spend, but we just can't do the kitten thing again!! They are too hard to get rid of. We will just skimp somewhere else. It just stinks that we have had to put out so much money this week, money that we don't really have. But God has always provided for us; He has never let us starve!! We don't eat steak, but we do eat. God is good.
Our weather is definitely fall. The trees are looking so beautiful! The vibrant reds are just gorgeous. I grew up in Southern California where there weren't seasons. Kinda just green and brown. I absolutely love living where there are four distinct seasons. And fall is my favorite! I love all the colors, the crisp nights and pleasant days, etc. I am so glad that summer is over!
Jeremy and Lucy had another ultrasound, and everything looks good. Please continue to keep them, and their baby, in your prayers. Thank you.
That is about all that is happening around here. Thank you for visiting and checking up on David. I hope you all have a great evening. God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Despite the success of chemotherapy for osteosarcoma, it has one of the lowest survival rates for pediatric cancer.
T.G.I.F.!! This has been a week, that's for sure. David is doing well is school, so far. He is right on track and is not behind! Yay! For the first time in 3 years! He actually started on time this year, and hopefully he will stay on schedule. He is not looking at any surgeries during this school year, for the first time in 3 years. Of course he will still have scans, oncology Dr. visits, and surgeon Dr. visits during the year, but no surgeries until next summer!! Woo-Hoo!! It feels great to say that. He has had multiple surgeries every year since he was diagnosed, and that helped contribute to him getting behind. I am so happy that his Senior year of High School will be surgery-free. Prayerfully, that is. We are going to plan for that, anyway.
So far my dishwasher is still working, and hopefully it will stay that way. My washing machine got fixed yesterday, so today I did laundry. I am so happy to be able to do laundry again. I sure didn't like the $145+ it took to be able to do laundry again, but that is life. At least all my appliances are working again. I hope I didn't 'jinx' anything by saying that, ha-ha.
Please continue to pray for my daughter, Rachel. She was able to get most of the money together (she still needs more for food and souvies); but now there is a hang-up with her passport. I had an official copy of her birth certificate from California that she used to apply for her passport. Well, she sent everything in over 2 months ago (she is leaving Oct. 31), and yesterday she received a notice in the mail that her birth certificate wasn't acceptable. So, to make a long story short, she is jumping through all the hoops now to get her passport. Please pray that it comes in time. Thanks.
We still have 3 kittens to get rid of~~~any takers? They are still in the spare room, and I want them gone so I can fix up the spare room! We had to spend the money to get the mama fixed, but it wasn't too bad. It was just over $160 for an office visit, the spaying, the medicine, all her shots, and the suture removal in 2 weeks. It was more money than we wanted to spend, but we just can't do the kitten thing again!! They are too hard to get rid of. We will just skimp somewhere else. It just stinks that we have had to put out so much money this week, money that we don't really have. But God has always provided for us; He has never let us starve!! We don't eat steak, but we do eat. God is good.
Our weather is definitely fall. The trees are looking so beautiful! The vibrant reds are just gorgeous. I grew up in Southern California where there weren't seasons. Kinda just green and brown. I absolutely love living where there are four distinct seasons. And fall is my favorite! I love all the colors, the crisp nights and pleasant days, etc. I am so glad that summer is over!
Jeremy and Lucy had another ultrasound, and everything looks good. Please continue to keep them, and their baby, in your prayers. Thank you.
That is about all that is happening around here. Thank you for visiting and checking up on David. I hope you all have a great evening. God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Despite the success of chemotherapy for osteosarcoma, it has one of the lowest survival rates for pediatric cancer.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Good evening.
We have had a relatively busy weekend. We had fun at the Childhood Cancer Awareness day in Reno. David got a T-shirt that says 'September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month' on the front with a gold ribbon. It was great to see people support our children with cancer. We didn't eat pancakes, but I heard they were good. They were Mickey Mouse pancakes~~very cute. Then today we went to Reno, again, to meet some of our Osteo family members. Kim, Darrin, and Ty, it was wonderful to finally meet you guys. We had a great time, it was just too short! We would love to go camping with you guys sometime. It was great that the kids texted for hours after you left!! Crazy kids! Then we stayed in Reno for a little bit and went to a place called 'Fresh Berry' that has frozen yogurt with 3 free toppings! I love the sugar-free vanilla topped with blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries. Ummm, yummy! Then we came home and did some housework. Then I made tacos for dinner, and here we are. It was a good weekend.
Here are some more Childhood Cancer Facts:
Several childhood cancers continue to have a very poor prognosis, including: brain stem tumors, metastatic sarcomas (that's what David has), relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and relapsed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Each day, 46 children are diagnosed with cancer
One in 330 children will develop cancer by age 20
Although cure rates are steadily increasing, 35% of children will die
Cancer remains the number one disease killer of children; more than genetic anomalies, cystic fibrosis, and AIDS combined
The overall incidence rate for childhood cancers has increased significantly by almost 33% during the period 1975 to 2001
On average a treatment for childhood cancer diagnosis is two years
Cancer treatment can cause serious side effects that may last a lifetime
Research on the emotional impact of childhood cancer finds that parents and siblings report even greater longterm emotional impacts than the diagnosed child
These statistics are unacceptable to me!! We need more awareness and funding! Please write to your congressman, senator, even the President to get more research dollars sent to Childhood Cancer. The $30 million that was promised a long time ago has NOT been funded yet!! That is ridiculous!! There is NO excuse for that. Please do what you can to help. I hope you watched 'Stand up to Cancer' on Friday night. I just wish more exposure was given to childhood cancers. Maybe someday.......
Thanks for checking in. I hope you had a great weekend. Kim, Darrin, and Ty, we miss you guys!! I hope everyone has a good Monday. Take care and God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
We have had a relatively busy weekend. We had fun at the Childhood Cancer Awareness day in Reno. David got a T-shirt that says 'September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month' on the front with a gold ribbon. It was great to see people support our children with cancer. We didn't eat pancakes, but I heard they were good. They were Mickey Mouse pancakes~~very cute. Then today we went to Reno, again, to meet some of our Osteo family members. Kim, Darrin, and Ty, it was wonderful to finally meet you guys. We had a great time, it was just too short! We would love to go camping with you guys sometime. It was great that the kids texted for hours after you left!! Crazy kids! Then we stayed in Reno for a little bit and went to a place called 'Fresh Berry' that has frozen yogurt with 3 free toppings! I love the sugar-free vanilla topped with blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries. Ummm, yummy! Then we came home and did some housework. Then I made tacos for dinner, and here we are. It was a good weekend.
Here are some more Childhood Cancer Facts:
Several childhood cancers continue to have a very poor prognosis, including: brain stem tumors, metastatic sarcomas (that's what David has), relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and relapsed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Each day, 46 children are diagnosed with cancer
One in 330 children will develop cancer by age 20
Although cure rates are steadily increasing, 35% of children will die
Cancer remains the number one disease killer of children; more than genetic anomalies, cystic fibrosis, and AIDS combined
The overall incidence rate for childhood cancers has increased significantly by almost 33% during the period 1975 to 2001
On average a treatment for childhood cancer diagnosis is two years
Cancer treatment can cause serious side effects that may last a lifetime
Research on the emotional impact of childhood cancer finds that parents and siblings report even greater longterm emotional impacts than the diagnosed child
These statistics are unacceptable to me!! We need more awareness and funding! Please write to your congressman, senator, even the President to get more research dollars sent to Childhood Cancer. The $30 million that was promised a long time ago has NOT been funded yet!! That is ridiculous!! There is NO excuse for that. Please do what you can to help. I hope you watched 'Stand up to Cancer' on Friday night. I just wish more exposure was given to childhood cancers. Maybe someday.......
Thanks for checking in. I hope you had a great weekend. Kim, Darrin, and Ty, we miss you guys!! I hope everyone has a good Monday. Take care and God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Good evening.
Sorry I haven't updated for awhile; it has been extremely stressful around here. Here is an explanation.
You know my dishwasher and dryer died. Well, Bryon worked a bunch of overtime, so we decided to use that money for a dishwasher and a dryer. We have this great store in town, called Appliance Outlet, that has brand new appliances at discounted prices. So we bought the dishwasher and the dryer. Well, we had the dryer installed and it works great! It doesn't match my washer, but I really don't care. I couldn't afford a dryer with all the bells and whistles anyway. Oh, the reason we decided to buy instead of repair the dryer is because the dryer is 10 years old and we were told it would cost close to $200 to fix it; and then who knows how long it would be before something else went out. Plus, I needed a dryer that was as big as my washer, load size wise. So, we bought a new one. And it still works great! But......
The Koury Curse continues. We had the dishwasher installed, and it worked for one load, and then I got an error code that said there is a leakage error, and to call for service. So, the repairman came out and fixed it. He fixed it on Monday, and I used it Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Then this morning I noticed that I was getting the same error code. So, the repairman came out and fixed it again this afternoon. Now we will see if it continues to work. But wait, that's not all. I said the curse continues, and it does. Tuesday, after I had done 2 loads of laundry and was on my third, my washer had an error. It wouldn't drain, so it said to clean the pump filter, and it the error continues to call for service. Well, I cleaned the filter and it still wouldn't work. Bryon got home from work and basically tore the thing apart trying to make sure there was nothing blocking the hoses. Well, it still didn't work. So I had to call for service. The repairman came today, and the bottom line is, we need a new pump. I am so frustrated!! The repairman told me that these newfangled washers have these pumps that are energy efficient, but not very sturdy. Great! I prefer a stronger pump and heck with the stupid efficiency!! So, now we had to pay $55 for the service call; and however much it is going to be for the actual repair. But, it is cheaper than buying a new one!! So, as you can see, the Koury Curse is still on!! I am NOT even going to ask what's next! I don't want to know. I just wanted to cry. I called Bryon (when the dishwasher was blinking the error code this morning) and told him that I cry "Uncle!!" I'm soooo done! I am back on that fast track to a nervous breakdown!! Deep breaths.
Saturday is our local Childhood Cancer Awareness Day in Reno. There is a pancake breakfast, booths, speeches, and activities for the kids. We went last year, and we are going again this year. It is from 9-12. No sleeping in on Saturday, but that is ok. It will be a busy morning, but it should be fun. We had a good time last year.
Please remember that this is Childhood Cancer Awareness month. Please get the word out there that we need a cure. Our children are our future, we need to make sure they have one. All us parents have so many hopes and dreams for our children, and usually just living isn't one of them; we all assume that they will. They when a doctor tells you that your child has cancer, and has less than a 20% chance of living, all your hopes and dreams for that child change. Our hope for David is just that he lives. Our dreams have changed. We have had to go through a grief process. Yes, David is alive, but the grief is because the child he was is no longer. We have 'lost' the David that we had BC (before cancer). I pray for a day when NO parent has to hear the words that their child has cancer; when NO parent has to grieve while their child is still alive; that NO parent has to watch their child fight this monster; that NO parent has to watch their child take his/her last breath; etc. Please pray for the funding for a cure. I personally can't give money towards a cure, but I did sacrifice my hair. Please watch 'Stand UP 2 Cancer' tomorrow night. It is on just about every station at 7pm central time. I don't think it is just about childhood cancer, but they are going to show 46 moms who shaved their heads for childhood cancer awareness and funding.
I guess I have bored you long enough. Thank you for checking in. God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
“Each day that pediatric cancer research goes under-funded, the road to discovering new treatments and cures become longer, and more children are put at risk,” said Gregory Reaman, M.D., Chairman of the Children's Oncology Group
Sorry I haven't updated for awhile; it has been extremely stressful around here. Here is an explanation.
You know my dishwasher and dryer died. Well, Bryon worked a bunch of overtime, so we decided to use that money for a dishwasher and a dryer. We have this great store in town, called Appliance Outlet, that has brand new appliances at discounted prices. So we bought the dishwasher and the dryer. Well, we had the dryer installed and it works great! It doesn't match my washer, but I really don't care. I couldn't afford a dryer with all the bells and whistles anyway. Oh, the reason we decided to buy instead of repair the dryer is because the dryer is 10 years old and we were told it would cost close to $200 to fix it; and then who knows how long it would be before something else went out. Plus, I needed a dryer that was as big as my washer, load size wise. So, we bought a new one. And it still works great! But......
The Koury Curse continues. We had the dishwasher installed, and it worked for one load, and then I got an error code that said there is a leakage error, and to call for service. So, the repairman came out and fixed it. He fixed it on Monday, and I used it Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Then this morning I noticed that I was getting the same error code. So, the repairman came out and fixed it again this afternoon. Now we will see if it continues to work. But wait, that's not all. I said the curse continues, and it does. Tuesday, after I had done 2 loads of laundry and was on my third, my washer had an error. It wouldn't drain, so it said to clean the pump filter, and it the error continues to call for service. Well, I cleaned the filter and it still wouldn't work. Bryon got home from work and basically tore the thing apart trying to make sure there was nothing blocking the hoses. Well, it still didn't work. So I had to call for service. The repairman came today, and the bottom line is, we need a new pump. I am so frustrated!! The repairman told me that these newfangled washers have these pumps that are energy efficient, but not very sturdy. Great! I prefer a stronger pump and heck with the stupid efficiency!! So, now we had to pay $55 for the service call; and however much it is going to be for the actual repair. But, it is cheaper than buying a new one!! So, as you can see, the Koury Curse is still on!! I am NOT even going to ask what's next! I don't want to know. I just wanted to cry. I called Bryon (when the dishwasher was blinking the error code this morning) and told him that I cry "Uncle!!" I'm soooo done! I am back on that fast track to a nervous breakdown!! Deep breaths.
Saturday is our local Childhood Cancer Awareness Day in Reno. There is a pancake breakfast, booths, speeches, and activities for the kids. We went last year, and we are going again this year. It is from 9-12. No sleeping in on Saturday, but that is ok. It will be a busy morning, but it should be fun. We had a good time last year.
Please remember that this is Childhood Cancer Awareness month. Please get the word out there that we need a cure. Our children are our future, we need to make sure they have one. All us parents have so many hopes and dreams for our children, and usually just living isn't one of them; we all assume that they will. They when a doctor tells you that your child has cancer, and has less than a 20% chance of living, all your hopes and dreams for that child change. Our hope for David is just that he lives. Our dreams have changed. We have had to go through a grief process. Yes, David is alive, but the grief is because the child he was is no longer. We have 'lost' the David that we had BC (before cancer). I pray for a day when NO parent has to hear the words that their child has cancer; when NO parent has to grieve while their child is still alive; that NO parent has to watch their child fight this monster; that NO parent has to watch their child take his/her last breath; etc. Please pray for the funding for a cure. I personally can't give money towards a cure, but I did sacrifice my hair. Please watch 'Stand UP 2 Cancer' tomorrow night. It is on just about every station at 7pm central time. I don't think it is just about childhood cancer, but they are going to show 46 moms who shaved their heads for childhood cancer awareness and funding.
I guess I have bored you long enough. Thank you for checking in. God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
“Each day that pediatric cancer research goes under-funded, the road to discovering new treatments and cures become longer, and more children are put at risk,” said Gregory Reaman, M.D., Chairman of the Children's Oncology Group
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Here are some very interesting facts concerning Childhood Cancer. I think it is high time that it gets some attention. IT IS ABSOLUTELY a PLAGUE IN THE US:
DID YOU KNOW?
* In the U.S. almost 3000 children die from cancer each year, more than from asthma, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, congenital anomalies, and pediatric AIDS combined.
* Cancer is the number one disease killer of children between ages of 1-19
*1 in 330 will be diagnosed with cancer by age 20.
*The incidence of childhood cancer has increased EVERY year for the last 25 years!
* In the past 25 years ONLY ONE new cancer drug has been approved for pediatric use. Since children can handle much more chemo than adults, most treatments are little more than mega doses of adult cancer chemotherapy treatments. The result of these high doses of chemo on children is a higher rate of secondary cancers. For reasons not fully known, teenagers experience the highest rate of secondary cancers as a result of the high dose chemotherapy treatments.
*At the time of diagnosis in children, the cancer has already spread in 80% of the cases. That is compared to the 20% in adults
*As a nation, we spend $14 BILLION per year on the space program, but only $35 MILLION on childhood cancer research per year.
* The National Cancer Institutes federal budget is about $5 Billion. Less than 3% of the budget goes towards all pediatric cancers combined. The rest goes toward adult cancers. Breast cancer alone receives 12%. Prostate cancer receives 7%.
*The government recently cut the budget for Childhood Cancer.
*Only 3 percent of the budget from the National Cancer Institute goes towards Pediatric Cancer Research.
* September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness month, which nationally goes largely unrecognized.
Stephen Sallan, chief of staff at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, says adults attract more cancer research than children because they are a far larger and more lucrative market. Patients younger than 20 make up 12,400 of the nearly 1.4 million Americans stricken with cancer each year. Drug companies are generally unwilling to invest hundreds of millions of dollars into such a small market, he says.
I know I am running these facts into the ground; but I am outraged by all of this. I have to admit, I didn't know any of these facts before my son was diagnosed with a childhood cancer. What Stephen Sallon says about the kids not being worth the money (my words) just infruiates me!! And it should you, too. Please get the word out about Childhood Cancer awareness. We made little gold ribbon pins and put them in our church bulletins this morning. It was fantastic to see most people put their pins on; hopefully it started some conversations when they left church. We need the awareness so we can get the funding for our children. You never know when it could be your child, or your grandchild, or your neice or nephew, etc. We need to find a cure!
Thanks for stopping by. Have a good rest of your weekend. God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
DID YOU KNOW?
* In the U.S. almost 3000 children die from cancer each year, more than from asthma, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, congenital anomalies, and pediatric AIDS combined.
* Cancer is the number one disease killer of children between ages of 1-19
*1 in 330 will be diagnosed with cancer by age 20.
*The incidence of childhood cancer has increased EVERY year for the last 25 years!
* In the past 25 years ONLY ONE new cancer drug has been approved for pediatric use. Since children can handle much more chemo than adults, most treatments are little more than mega doses of adult cancer chemotherapy treatments. The result of these high doses of chemo on children is a higher rate of secondary cancers. For reasons not fully known, teenagers experience the highest rate of secondary cancers as a result of the high dose chemotherapy treatments.
*At the time of diagnosis in children, the cancer has already spread in 80% of the cases. That is compared to the 20% in adults
*As a nation, we spend $14 BILLION per year on the space program, but only $35 MILLION on childhood cancer research per year.
* The National Cancer Institutes federal budget is about $5 Billion. Less than 3% of the budget goes towards all pediatric cancers combined. The rest goes toward adult cancers. Breast cancer alone receives 12%. Prostate cancer receives 7%.
*The government recently cut the budget for Childhood Cancer.
*Only 3 percent of the budget from the National Cancer Institute goes towards Pediatric Cancer Research.
* September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness month, which nationally goes largely unrecognized.
Stephen Sallan, chief of staff at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, says adults attract more cancer research than children because they are a far larger and more lucrative market. Patients younger than 20 make up 12,400 of the nearly 1.4 million Americans stricken with cancer each year. Drug companies are generally unwilling to invest hundreds of millions of dollars into such a small market, he says.
I know I am running these facts into the ground; but I am outraged by all of this. I have to admit, I didn't know any of these facts before my son was diagnosed with a childhood cancer. What Stephen Sallon says about the kids not being worth the money (my words) just infruiates me!! And it should you, too. Please get the word out about Childhood Cancer awareness. We made little gold ribbon pins and put them in our church bulletins this morning. It was fantastic to see most people put their pins on; hopefully it started some conversations when they left church. We need the awareness so we can get the funding for our children. You never know when it could be your child, or your grandchild, or your neice or nephew, etc. We need to find a cure!
Thanks for stopping by. Have a good rest of your weekend. God bless you all. We love you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Saturday, September 4, 2010
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Each day, 46 children are diagnosed with cancer. Each day, 11 children die as a result of childhood cancer. It is the number one killer disease of our children, more than more than from asthma, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, congenital anomalies, and pediatric AIDS combined. Did you know that 1 in 300 children will be diagnosed with cancer before age 20 and that 35-40,000 are in treatment every day? Yet only 3% of all cancer research money goes to childhood cancer. Our war against childhood cancer is vastly under-publicized and under-funded. It is the Inconvenient Truth America needs to be aware of.
I don’t know how many of you readers have ever been on a pediatric oncology floor. If you have ever walked the halls and seen the smiles or tears on the faces of these little fighters as they play on the little trikes and big wheels. How the moms and dads race behind them with the ever present IV pole. How they have little child-sized masks on because they are at high risk of infection. How the teens hang together and still try to be cool, even though they’re bald and ready to throw up at any time. How the teens have added words like methotrexate, hydration, and limb-salvage; and acronyms like ANC and GCSF to their vocabulary, instead of LOL and "sweet". How the poor little babies cry because they can't even relate what hurts. Or if you've ever seen a mom or dad alone in the parent room at 3 am, with their head in their hands, feeling alone, helpless, scared and mad. I don't know if you've ever visited a Care Page or a Caring Bridge site besides this one, blogs where we tell our kid's stories. I've seen it all and more. I have watched my child be one of those teens, I have been one of 'those parents' in the parent room. I have seen enough. I have lived through it. I am still living it. I will forever live it.
• Each day that cooperative group pediatric cancer research goes under funded the road to discovering new treatments and cures become longer, putting more children at risk.
• For the first time since its founding, the decrease in funding to the Children’s Oncology Group moves research to a dangerous level where studies and accompanying laboratory research that hold promise will not take place.
• Reduce Enrollment in Clinical Trials: The COG reduced enrollment in our clinical trials by 400 patients in 2007 and put about 20 new studies on hold indefinitely related to resources available to fund them.
• At a time when breakthroughs can be made in treating all childhood cancer and the quality of life for children with cancer improved, the continued decline in government funding will endanger the development of new clinical trials and threaten progress in curing childhood cancer.
Remember September~~~Gold ribbons for Childhood Cancer Awareness. Awareness = funding. We need to save our children!! Please get the word out!
I hope you all have a good day today. We are going to Apple Hill today. Usually we go on my birthday weekend, but it seems that alot of the apples are gone by then, so we are going a few weeks earlier this year. Thanks for stopping by. God bless you all.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
I don’t know how many of you readers have ever been on a pediatric oncology floor. If you have ever walked the halls and seen the smiles or tears on the faces of these little fighters as they play on the little trikes and big wheels. How the moms and dads race behind them with the ever present IV pole. How they have little child-sized masks on because they are at high risk of infection. How the teens hang together and still try to be cool, even though they’re bald and ready to throw up at any time. How the teens have added words like methotrexate, hydration, and limb-salvage; and acronyms like ANC and GCSF to their vocabulary, instead of LOL and "sweet". How the poor little babies cry because they can't even relate what hurts. Or if you've ever seen a mom or dad alone in the parent room at 3 am, with their head in their hands, feeling alone, helpless, scared and mad. I don't know if you've ever visited a Care Page or a Caring Bridge site besides this one, blogs where we tell our kid's stories. I've seen it all and more. I have watched my child be one of those teens, I have been one of 'those parents' in the parent room. I have seen enough. I have lived through it. I am still living it. I will forever live it.
• Each day that cooperative group pediatric cancer research goes under funded the road to discovering new treatments and cures become longer, putting more children at risk.
• For the first time since its founding, the decrease in funding to the Children’s Oncology Group moves research to a dangerous level where studies and accompanying laboratory research that hold promise will not take place.
• Reduce Enrollment in Clinical Trials: The COG reduced enrollment in our clinical trials by 400 patients in 2007 and put about 20 new studies on hold indefinitely related to resources available to fund them.
• At a time when breakthroughs can be made in treating all childhood cancer and the quality of life for children with cancer improved, the continued decline in government funding will endanger the development of new clinical trials and threaten progress in curing childhood cancer.
Remember September~~~Gold ribbons for Childhood Cancer Awareness. Awareness = funding. We need to save our children!! Please get the word out!
I hope you all have a good day today. We are going to Apple Hill today. Usually we go on my birthday weekend, but it seems that alot of the apples are gone by then, so we are going a few weeks earlier this year. Thanks for stopping by. God bless you all.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
September is a disease awareness month, which you probably recognized by the gold ribbons displayed on all the corporate advertising on TV and in magazines and the special media reports.
What’s that? You haven’t seen any? That’s because, for some reason, this class of diseases attracts hardly any public attention.
If I said “pink ribbon,” you would have immediately thought of breast cancer. “Red ribbon” might be a little trickier, but eventually you would have come up with heart disease.
But the gold ribbon is nearly invisible.
It represents childhood cancers.
Today, as you read this, the equivalent of a classroom full of children will be diagnosed with cancer in the U.S., more than 12,400 a year. About 4,000 child cancer victims will die this year, making cancer the number one disease-related killer of children under 14.
While 75 percent of childhood cancer cases are curable, for some forms, a cure remains illusive.
Only one new cancer drug has been approved for pediatric use over the past two decades. For some of the rarest, but most deadly, childhood cancers, no new treatments have been introduced in more than three decades.
For every one child diagnosed with pediatric AIDS, 15 children are diagnosed with cancer, yet available funding dollars designated for research are vastly disproportionate: $595,000 for each AIDS victim and only $20,000 for each pediatric cancer victim.
Federal funding for breast cancer research is more than double that for all 12 major groups of pediatric cancer combined.
When the end of September is approaching and Childhood Cancer Awareness Month has passed, it will have been largely unnoticed by society. The rush to shower us with pink in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness month is reminiscent of the crowding away of pumpkins and scarecrows by Christmas trees and snowmen.
Except there's no pushing gold aside. The way is clear for pink.
Even the American Cancer Society -- the outfit that professes to represent all cancers and provide support for everyone affected by the disease -- the organization for which we all come together and raise funds by holding a Relay each year -- has chosen not to recognize Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
Go to www.cancer.org and what do you see? The banner at the top of the page is pink and touts the ACS' commitment to fighting breast cancer.
What if the focus that remains on breast cancer was turned to pediatric cancer?
I know millions of women are affected by breast cancer. But almost all of them are effectively treated.
Only thousands of kids are affected by cancer. But many -- perhaps most -- of them die.
I am grateful for the pink that signals the arrival of October in our day and time. I just wish there was a wave of gold -- more in terms of funding for research, but also in terms of awareness -- to usher in the pink.
If you are reading this, you know. You have traveled this tragic journey with us and you are aware of the impact of pediatric cancer on families.
Will you spread the word to someone who doesn't know today? Send an e-mail. Copy this to your blog, your faceook, your twitter. Write a letter to a corporation or a legislator. Or to an editor. Whatever it takes. Our children are our future. We need to help give them a chance to live. We need a lot more funding going to childhood cancer research. Please help.
I don't want to offend anyone who has suffered from breast cancer. It is not that I think we should ignore breast cancer, I just wish our children got the exposure that breast cancer gets. Our children are probably the most innocent of cancer victims. Please, get the word out that September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month, and GOLD is the color for Childhood Cancer. Thank you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
What’s that? You haven’t seen any? That’s because, for some reason, this class of diseases attracts hardly any public attention.
If I said “pink ribbon,” you would have immediately thought of breast cancer. “Red ribbon” might be a little trickier, but eventually you would have come up with heart disease.
But the gold ribbon is nearly invisible.
It represents childhood cancers.
Today, as you read this, the equivalent of a classroom full of children will be diagnosed with cancer in the U.S., more than 12,400 a year. About 4,000 child cancer victims will die this year, making cancer the number one disease-related killer of children under 14.
While 75 percent of childhood cancer cases are curable, for some forms, a cure remains illusive.
Only one new cancer drug has been approved for pediatric use over the past two decades. For some of the rarest, but most deadly, childhood cancers, no new treatments have been introduced in more than three decades.
For every one child diagnosed with pediatric AIDS, 15 children are diagnosed with cancer, yet available funding dollars designated for research are vastly disproportionate: $595,000 for each AIDS victim and only $20,000 for each pediatric cancer victim.
Federal funding for breast cancer research is more than double that for all 12 major groups of pediatric cancer combined.
When the end of September is approaching and Childhood Cancer Awareness Month has passed, it will have been largely unnoticed by society. The rush to shower us with pink in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness month is reminiscent of the crowding away of pumpkins and scarecrows by Christmas trees and snowmen.
Except there's no pushing gold aside. The way is clear for pink.
Even the American Cancer Society -- the outfit that professes to represent all cancers and provide support for everyone affected by the disease -- the organization for which we all come together and raise funds by holding a Relay each year -- has chosen not to recognize Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
Go to www.cancer.org and what do you see? The banner at the top of the page is pink and touts the ACS' commitment to fighting breast cancer.
What if the focus that remains on breast cancer was turned to pediatric cancer?
I know millions of women are affected by breast cancer. But almost all of them are effectively treated.
Only thousands of kids are affected by cancer. But many -- perhaps most -- of them die.
I am grateful for the pink that signals the arrival of October in our day and time. I just wish there was a wave of gold -- more in terms of funding for research, but also in terms of awareness -- to usher in the pink.
If you are reading this, you know. You have traveled this tragic journey with us and you are aware of the impact of pediatric cancer on families.
Will you spread the word to someone who doesn't know today? Send an e-mail. Copy this to your blog, your faceook, your twitter. Write a letter to a corporation or a legislator. Or to an editor. Whatever it takes. Our children are our future. We need to help give them a chance to live. We need a lot more funding going to childhood cancer research. Please help.
I don't want to offend anyone who has suffered from breast cancer. It is not that I think we should ignore breast cancer, I just wish our children got the exposure that breast cancer gets. Our children are probably the most innocent of cancer victims. Please, get the word out that September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month, and GOLD is the color for Childhood Cancer. Thank you.
Kristi and the Koury Klan
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