Yesterday, the International Day of Children with Cancer was commemorated, a disease that affects between 900 and 950 children aged 0 and 14 each year. Despite the cruelty of cancer, good news fills us with hope: Survival in children with cancer is increasing.
It will be because children overcome cancer better than the survival rate reaches 77 percent, according to data released by the Spanish Association Against Cancer (AECC).
Mortality among the youngest has been reduced by 57 percent in the last 30 years.
Childhood cancer is the leading cause of disease death in children in developed countries, with leukemia being the most frequent, followed by lymphomas, tumors of the central nervous system, sympathetic nervous system and sarcomas.
While the news is good, let's not forget that for the child who suffers it and his family, the disease is a very difficult drink to overcome. And there is still much to improve for specialized and quality care.
The associations of parents of children affected by cancer claim the possibility of improving the diagnosis in children, hospital units with specialized treatments, home units and a better quality of life during the disease.
In this year's Children's Day with Cancer celebrations they have taken the opportunity to claim cancer units for adolescents in hospitals, separated from that of the youngest children and adults, since at these ages such characteristics require and deserve personalized attention.
