World Childhood Cancer Day 2024… 1000 Children Diagnosed Daily
World Childhood Cancer Day is observed on February 15th of each year, an event aimed at raising awareness about the importance of early screening and monitoring children’s health.
This annual event also focuses on the vital role of parents and doctors in recognizing early signs of certain types of cancer in children, as well as assisting them in recovery.
The theme of World Childhood Cancer Day 2024 is “Revealing the Challenges”, highlighting the various obstacles faced by children with cancer, their caregivers, and healthcare professionals worldwide.
The first celebration of this event was initiated by the International Childhood Cancer Organization in 2002, with the goal of raising awareness about childhood cancer and its impact on children, teenagers, their parents, and families worldwide.
Founded in 1994, the International Childhood Cancer Organization comprises approximately 170 organizations supporting parents and children’s associations in remission or support groups in around 90 different countries across five continents. The day honors children who have fought cancer as well as those who rally support for research and funding initiatives.
Facts About Childhood Cancer
The term “childhood cancer” refers to a wide range of cancer types that primarily develop in individuals under the age of 20, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer.
These cancer types differ from those commonly diagnosed in adults, with blood cancers, lymphatic tumors, and central nervous system tumors being the most common cancer types in children.
The distribution of different cancer types varies with each age year of children as they grow, with two separate peaks of incidence, at 0-4 years and 15-19 years.
Certain environmental causes, such as radiation, increase the risk of cancer in children, but most causes of pediatric cancers remain unknown.
According to the World Health Organization, over 1000 children are diagnosed with cancer daily worldwide, and with modern medical advances, chances of survival increase in high-income countries, where over 80% of children diagnosed with cancer will survive.
However, only 20% of children diagnosed with cancer will survive in some low and middle-income countries.
The latest estimates indicate that over 70% of all children diagnosed with cancer in the World Health Organization Eastern Mediterranean region died in 2022.
In the Eastern Mediterranean region, blood cancer was the most common cancer among children and adolescents aged 0-19 years in 2022, along with retinoblastoma (eye tumor) and brain tumors.
