JOIN THE FUN AND GET A SHAVE - THE KID'S WILL LOVE YA FOR IT

St. Baldrick’s Foundation

CHILDHOOD CANCER & NEUROBLASTOMA FACTS

Leukemia - Leukemias are the most common childhood cancers. They account for about 33% of all childhood cancers. Acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) and acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) are the most common types of leukemia in children.

Brain and nervous system cancers - Brain and other nervous system cancers are the second most common cancers in children, making up about 21% of childhood cancers.

Neuroblastoma - Neuroblastoma is a form of cancer that starts in certain types of nerve cells found in a developing embryo or fetus. This type of cancer occurs in infants and young children. It is most often found during the first year of life. It is rarely found in children older than 10. This tumor can start anywhere but usually occurs in the belly (abdomen) and is noticed as swelling. It can also cause bone pain and fever. It accounts for about 7% of childhood cancers.

Wilms tumor - Wilms tumor is a cancer that starts in one, or rarely, both kidneys. It is most often found in children about 3 years old, and is uncommon in children older than age 6.

Lymphomas - Non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Hodgkin lymphoma (sometimes called Hodgkin disease, Hodgkin's disease, or Hodgkin's lymphoma), are cancers that start in lymph tissues, such as the tonsils, lymph nodes, and thymus.

Rhabdomyosarcoma - Rhabdomyosarcoma is the most common soft tissue sarcoma in children.

Retinoblastoma - Retinoblastoma is a cancer of the eye. It is rare, accounting for just under 3% of childhood cancers

Bone cancers - Primary bone cancers (cancers that start in the bones) occur most often in children and adolescents.

Osteosarcoma is uncommon, accounting for almost 3% of all new childhood cancer cases in the United States. It often causes no pain or symptoms until swelling starts, but sometimes there is bone pain that keeps getting worse. .

Ewing sarcoma is a less common primary bone cancer which can cause bone pain. It is mostly found in adolescents. It accounts for a little more than 1% of childhood cancers
.

Neuroblastoma:

• Approximately 500 to 1,000 children are diagnosed with neuroblastoma in the United States each year.

• Doctors have known about neuroblastoma for approximately 35 years.

• Neuroblastoma is primarily diagnosed in children ages 14 and under, with most cases in children younger than 5 years.

• The cause of neuroblastoma is unknown, and it is more likely to occur in males than females.

• Neuroblastoma is difficult to diagnose in small children, and its progression is often rapid and painful.

• Neuroblastoma accounts for 8 percent of childhood cancer cases, but is responsible for 15 percent of all childhood cancer deaths.

• One in 330 children will develop cancer by age 20.

• Each school day, 46 children are diagnosed with cancer.

• Each child in the U.S. diagnosed with cancer receives approximately one-sixth of the federal research support allocated to each patient afflicted with AIDS. Yet in 2004, 48 new cases of pediatric AIDS were diagnosed vs. more than 12,000 pediatric cancer cases.

• Although the 5 year survival rate is steadily increasing, one quarter of children will die 5 years from the time of diagnosis

• Cancer accounts for the greatest number of disease deaths of children in the United States and kills more children per year than cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, asthma and AIDS combined

Sources: American Cancer Society, Band of Parents, Texas Oncology Group

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_6x_Children_and_Cancer.asp http://www.bandofparents.org/neuroblastoma.html
http://www.texasoncology.com/about.aspxid=2750&terms=neuroblastoma

C.O.L.E.'s FOUNDATION

C.O.L.E.'s FOUNDATION
Caring Openly, Loving Eternally

In need of prayer, please click picture to go to C.O.L.E.'S

Grandpa John's Prayer for His Little Buddies

I hear no voice, I feel no touch,
I see no glory bright;
But yet I know that God is near,
In darkness as in light.
God watches ever by my side,
And hears my whispered prayer:
A God of love for a little child
Both night and day does care --- Anonymous

Angel's Honor Roll- A Forever Dedication

- Our Angels -

Austin Melgar, Courtney Saunders, Cooper Riley Proscia, Emily Adamson, Victoria Houston, John Eric Bartels, Kathy Ann Wilkinson, Alara Curran, Spencer Dolling, Marissa Monroe, Olivia Weber, Alexa Aigner, Joe Daily, Ryan Willians, Janie Kashino, Dustin Cobb, Alyssa Chappell, Addison Whipple, Amber Mastey, Katie Krize, Gustavo-Alexis, Kelvin Harper, Maggie Achuff, Kristin Hope, Kahlilla Blyss, Arden Quinn Bucher, Douglas Swift, Max Mikulak, Eliza S, Brandon Loose, Kody Edwards, Brody Hurt, Jay Jay LeBoeuf, Kyah Milne, Nicholas Pagano, Trooper Dante Tareboreli, Carter Wax, Zachary Finestone, Cora McClenahan, Little Roy Gutierrez, Chloe Smith, *Cody Johnson*, Emilio Gravez, Jacob Stovall, Noah Tyler Bell, Shu Qinpet (pet name Xinxin), Jenna Mussolini and Owen Lea, Carson Clark, Juan Santiago Wall, Erik Ludwinski, Layla Grace Marsh, Samuel Thomas Hutchison, Sydney Marie Dudley, Sophie Atay (And Our Big Warrior hero 1st Lt Joseph Helton, USAF - 8 Sept 2009),

-Race Dedication-

  • In Memory of: Samuel Thomas Hutchison, Layla Grace Marsh, Sydney Marie Dudley and Sophie Atay.
  • In Honor of: Jessica Trotter
  • Next Race - TBD
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Gj's Buddies & Angels - Lighting the Way

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For more widgets please visit www.yourminis.com

Circle the Lake for the Cure

Circle the Lake for the Cure
Houghton Lake MI - 36 hours for the Cure

Email Grandpa John

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Mini-Race Report or Better Late than Never.

Run Statics:
50K – 31.0685 Miles
Elevation Gain over 50K: 9, 572 ft
Elevation Loss over 50K: 9,570 ft
Avg. pace: 16.03 (You had to be there to believe it )
Avg. Speed: 3.7 mph

Max Speed: 11.7 mph

Age Group Standings: 5th of 7 runners
Overall Standings: 112 out of 133
Total Time: 8:49:59.73 – Now that’s a Butt Kickin slow Whew!!!!

Temperatures were around 50 degrees race day morning. Not wanting to be late, Missus Gj and I headed out from our hotel room around 5am. The drive took twenty minutes. Parking attendants directed us to our parking spot, about 400 meters from the stat/finish line. This was necessary since the Relay teams had to use chase vehicles to meet the respective team runners at the various relay points; their race begin their race at 8am

Although we arrived early there where many runners already readying themselves for the arduous journey ahead (and that is not an understatement). I began to double check, no make that triple check my equipment: My Buddies pictures - check (Please note that I did not carry them around my neck due to the many hazards I would encounter on this run – Missus Gj held them for me at the finish line – she did show them off for all to see), Hydration pack – check, power bars & gels -check, trail shoes – check, drop bag – check, safari hat – check, all is ready
Suddenly, the race director called out “All you Krazy ultra runners to the starting line now, the racer starts in 5 minutes”. All too soon, the starting time (6:15am) was upon us; head lamps were going to be needed to see the trail for the first leg or so of the race. Runners Set...Go, we were off…
The runner’s headlamps made it look like hundreds of fire flies were lighting the trail as we set out. Since the starting line was out in the open at the beach it initially didn’t seem too dark until about a quarter mile later when we entered the foreboding wooded trail, made more for a goat than a human to be sure. At first we runners were bunched up as we snaked our way down the winding trail, looking ahead you could see the flickering of the headlights as the runners weaved in, out and down the darken path. As we proceeded, the pace smoothed out, our rhythms found. For safety reasons none of the runners attempted to pass; besides it was still way too early in the race to do else wise. The sun started to crest over the tress as we neared the end of this part of the race; it was a beautiful sunrise. In fact, I had to stop and marvel at its beauty as we turned down “Monks Rd (running west to east). The orange globe filtered thru a rising fog gave a surreal look to my path forward (it was so beautiful that I thought that maybe this is what heaven is like for my Little Buddies). Appropriately, this section was called the Awakening, 4.75 miles in length and technically would rate a scale of 1 on a 1 to 5 rating with 1 being easiest. That rating would soon be nothing but a pleasant memory living within a horrible reality.

The next several sections of the ultra were technically more challenging and would be worthy of rating of anywhere from a 3 to 5. Most time trails were nonexistent as we blazed our way through poison ivy patches, nettle bushes, around fall tree and 3 knee high streams with muck and mud abounding - It was heaven. As I started to land after jumping a hefty tree blocking the trail, my left calf felt like a hammer hit it. Looking down I didn’t notice any blood so I continued on… this was somewhere around mile 9 ….I should have looked first since on the far bottom side of the truck was a broken limb just waiting to give me my first and only injury of the race. Only now a week later is the bruising evident….

I could go on and on about how beautiful the weather was last Saturday, how challenging the trails were and much I enjoyed the “Dances with Dirt Ultra” race, but there are not enough words to describe it adequately; it has to be lived, experienced - for through the pain of the 31.0685miles I found life and was able to spread the word about my Little Buddies to many runners….





















Develop an attitude of gratitude, and give thanks for everything that happens to you, knowing that every step forward is a step toward achieving something bigger and better than your current situation.-- Brian Tracy.


God Bless Everyone of you...
Till later,


Gj