People have asked this question, so to bring clarity to those who are not familiar with the disease, what better way to start than the beginning? The name ‘Cancer’ is very popular and frequently used whether people are talking about medical diagnosis, food and surprisingly clothing now cancer is linked to many things and products. Cancer is sometimes called the ‘BIG C’ and some reference it as a ‘Monster’. Some cancers are more aggressive and rarer than others leaving a cure and medication difficult.

Cancer – Cancer can start any place in the body. It starts when cells grow out of control and crowd out normal cells.

Childhood Cancer is not one disease – there are more than 12 major types of pediatric cancers and over 100 sub-types

 

Childhood Cancer – Cancer in a child

In the United States, an arbitrarily adopted standard of the ages used are 0–14 years inclusive, that is, up to 14 years 11.9 months of age.

However, the definition of childhood cancer sometimes includes adolescents between 15–19 years old.

Pediatric oncology is the branch of medicine concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of cancer in children.

Brain Tumor – A brain tumor is an abnormal growth? of tissue in the brain or central spine that can disrupt proper brain function. Doctors refer to a tumor based on where the tumor cells originated, and whether they are cancerous (malignant) or not (benign).

Stages of Cancer – Stages describe the progression of Cancer.

• Stage 0: carcinoma in situ, abnormal cells growing in their normal place (“in situ” from Latin for “in its place”).
• Stage I: cancers are localized to one part of the body. Stage I cancer can be surgically removed if small enough.
• Stage II: cancers are locally advanced. Stage II cancer can be treated by chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery.
• Stage III: cancers are also locally advanced. Whether a cancer is designated as Stage II or Stage III can depend on the specific type of cancer.
• Stage IV: cancers have often metastasized, or spread to other organs or throughout the body. Stage IV cancer can be treated by chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery. Despite treatment, a patient’s mortality rate can be significantly higher with Stage IV cancer, e.g., the cancer can progress to become terminal.
• Stage V: Stage V is only used in patients with Wilms’ Tumor, in whom both kidneys are involved at the time of diagnosis. Approximately 5% of patients with Wilms’ tumor are Stage V at diagnosis.

Zoefia Alexandria – Zoefia received several brain surgeries to remove as much of the tumor as possible, chemotherapy and radiation therapy .