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Raise Awareness About Childhood Cancer and Survivorship LINKED for Life Earlier this year I turned 62. I became a 57-year survivor of medulloblastoma. Diagnosed in 1966, I would not meet another survivor until 27 years later. Through him, I became familiar with the Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario (POGO).Over the years, survivors have been invited to contribute to the many advancements that POGO has made, not only from a medical standpoint but also from a survivorship standpoint. I was invited to present my speech “The Lived Experience” at the 2001 POGO Symposium. I am, and always will be, grateful to Dr. Mark Greenberg for asking me to do so. I am also grateful for so many other opportunities made available to me by POGO over the years. They say that it takes a village to raise a child. By village, they mean a community. Over time, that is what we have all become, a community. A community of medical experts, of parents, newly diagnosed patients, young survivors and long-term survivors. We may or may not all know each other, but we are all connected. The last few years have been very hard on me and I have turned to support from many survivors, some of whom I connected with through the POGO Survivor-to-Survivor (S2S) Network. We continue to “Learn” from one another, “Connect” with each other and “Empower” each other in a way only survivors can. And together we go on with renewed knowledge, strength and hope. September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month (CCAM). The S2S Network team is promoting awareness of and fundraising for childhood cancer care through POGO’s LINKED for Life campaign and they are inviting you to join them! Let’s use this opportunity to keep working on building our village. We are doing great so far.
Join the S2S team in raising money for LINKED for Life LINKED for Life and the S2S Network offer widespread opportunity for survivor involvement. Many of us face life’s challenges, hardships and disabilities that can be largely misunderstood by society. Being there for one another is a gift. We must, we will, be there for each other. We are “linked for life,” not just in September but all year, every year, for life. |
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