Opinion: Kids with cancer deserve more than a cure
As an oncologist and a leader at a national cancer organization, I’ve watched countless families celebrate the incredible news that their child has defeated a pediatric cancer. But I often don’t have the heart — at least not right away — to tell them what’s coming next: a lifetime of doctor’s visits, health issues, and stress, much of it related to the treatments that were used to ensure their child’s survival.
Treatments for pediatric cancers work well, but they come at a steep cost. Survivors of childhood cancers are twice as likely as their peers to develop at least one chronic health condition by age 50 and, on average, have 17 of them. For the youngest people with cancer, achieving remission is a major milestone to be celebrated, but it isn’t the end of their health problems; it’s often the beginning of a new journey.
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