JOHANNESBURG – February 15, 2014, is one of the most important days of the year since it is dedicated to creating awareness of childhood cancer.
Following hot on the heels of St Valentine’s Day, the perfect thought to hold for International Childhood Cancer Day is “Have a Heart for Children with Cancer”.
Because children are our future, they are our country’s true VIPs. They are, in fact, our Most Very Important People – which is why there is a crying urgency to create awareness of childhood cancer and the fact that, if detected early, most forms can be cured.
In South Africa one child in 600 gets cancer before the age of 16 – which is close to 2 700 per annum. The sad reality is that less than half of these children are ever diagnosed. Although 70% to 85% of cases can be cured, the shocking fact is that fewer than half are diagnosed early enough to be treated. Half are never diagnosed at all. This is primarily through ignorance – which is why it is so important to use International Childhood Cancer Day to enlighten the people of this country.
CHOC Childhood Cancer Foundation South Africa will be marking February 15, with a variety of events all over the country and appeals to schools, companies and even private people to join in the efforts to make this day hugely informative and productive. Companies could, for instance, make it a St Valentine’s tie-in ‘Civvies Day’ and hold a special collection for CHOC.
Schools are invited to ask the CHOC mascots, Thandi and her son, Keemo, to visit and tell the kids all the positive things about childhood cancer – the things that help CHOC ‘Keep More than Hope Alive!’
If you’re in the Bloemfontein area, take note of the Christian Motorcyclists Association’s Bike Breakfast Run being organised with CHOC. For just R50 you can enjoy the fun of the ride and a hearty breakfast. And in East London there’s a pre-school milk mini-tour for Nutri Kids at 3+ being sponsored by Spur.
If you’d like to get involved, please contact CHOC head office on (011) 486 1212 and find out what’s happening in your area.
Most importantly, we urge you to find out more about the warning signs of childhood cancer and what can be done about it. CHOC can let you have a highly informative leaflet, and two excellent programmes for your reference are: https://www.choc.org.za/warning_signs.html and https://www.choc.org.za/cancer_facts.html
Make this International Childhood Cancer Day the day you spread the word – and keep more than hope alive.
