September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

...and we go GOLD for Childhood Cancer Awareness.  Online or in person, we need your help  to make our campaign a success.  Read the facts here and together we can support the wellbeing of children diagnosed with brain tumours, other cancers and their families.

#DLFCCAM2023 Family Fun Day

#DLFCCAM2023 - Thank You to The Worshipful Mayor of Hillingdon Cllr Shehryar Ahmad-Wallana

...and our esteemed friends

The Worshipful Mayor of Hillingdon Cllr Shehryar Ahmad-Wallana and Steve Tuckwell, the Hillingdon Member of Parliament for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, Cllr Sital Punja, Cllr Stuart Mathers, Patricia Wright CEO The Hillingdon Hospital and Rev Richard Young St Matthew's Church for taking time to show their support and participate in the #DLFCCAM2023 #WearSomethingYellow campaign. 

Our Children and Young People diagnosed with brain tumours, other cancers and their families rely on your support to create a future community, where holistic wellbeing resources are more readily accessible, affordable and services are inclusive in catering for the special needs our children now have to learn to live with.

We offer a range of flexible services to support our children and their families.

September is a dedicated month to raise awareness of childhood cancers and consider the wellbeing implications for a child diagnosed with a brain tumour or a childhood cancer, the long term or permanent changes this diagnosis might bring to their life, family and friends. 

Did you know that 26% of childhood cancers are neurological (brain or spinal cord related)?  Brain tumours are unlike other cancers and behave very differently in children compared to adults - because children are still developing and cells are still rapidly growing.  Brain tumours cause 1 in 5 childhood cancer deaths in the UK and 10 children in the UK are diagnosed with a brain tumour weekly.  Children with brain tumours deteriorate very quickly and within weeks can loose all their major motor skills including speech and language, mobility, sight, hearing and bodily functions.  This is a difficult situation and we at the DLF understand.  We exist to support our families and reduce their feelings of isolation and helplessness during these changes. 

In September, we asking our community to think about childhood cancer, raise funds or extend an act of kindness to a child diagnosed with a brain tumour or other cancer in our community.  Please click on the logos on the right or contact us to find out more.  

Ongoing holistic wellbeing support was unavailable in 2015 when Dannie was diagnosed with a brain tumour."

We launched our first campaign in September 2021 which brought to life our vision for this campaign in our community.  We recognise that there is currently no dedicated local resource to offer holistic wellbeing support to Children or Young People diagnosed with brain tumours/other cancers and their families, whether receiving treatment or at end-of-life in hospital, at home or at a hospice.

There was no dedicated local resource immediately available to support Dannie's complex wellbeing needs or her end-of-life pathway in 2015.  This support gap increased the feeling of isolation Dannie faced and her core family unit struggled under the pressure and reality of meeting her complex care needs.  Today, many of our families tell us they still experience the same feeling of isolation in the community.

More about What We Do and Why Your Support is Important

Today, many of our families struggle with the same feeling of isolation and a sense of wellbeing neglect due to the fast-paced, life changes in their child's health, wellbeing and social care needs.  Many of our family relationships break apart under the strain and stress of these complex wellbeing changes. 

We believe more needs to be done to improve the wellbeing support available to our children.  A child diagnosed with cancer requires complex wellbeing and social care support that should be prioritised for alongside medical care, to ensure their holistic needs are addressed whilst receiving care.  Through ring-fenced local and national government funding, this is achievable. 

This is our vision.  Please join our campaign and write to your MP to request more funding to provide our children and their families with access to structured wellbeing support after diagnosis.  Please click here to read about some of the specialist services we offer or click the link below to learn more about our future hospice vision for our community.