Summary

In summary C2C is a non-profit organization providing free support to health professionals, families, volunteers and institutions in developing countries caring for children with leukemia, cancer and other severe diseases in compliance with shared principles and vision. The services offered will be pertinent to local realities and social values. The ultimate goal is to contribute to the development of worldwide evidence-based diagnostic and management standards that may improve the cure of all children with cancer.

Mission statement

Cure2Children (C2C) is a non-profit, non political and secular organization providing support to developing countries' health professionals caring for children with cancer and blood disorders.

Vision

1. To help professionals from developing regions offer the best possible treatment and follow-up care for their children with leukemia, cancer and related diseases.

2. To contribute to the elimination of geographical, financial and cultural barriers within the paediatric haematology-oncology global professional community.

Aims

The primary aim of this project is to facilitate the treatment and management of children with thalassemia, leukemia, cancer and other severe diseases in developing countries by providing professional education opportunities, qualified medical advice, drugs, medical equipment, family support programs, web-based patient management tools, and research grants.

Mission

Advances in information and communication technologies, changing world economy and increasing attention to social investment, may create an opportunity for significant steps forward in the number of children that can be cured from cancer worldwide. In fact, approximately 90% of the paediatric population lives in developing countries, many of which are drawing increasing attention to diseases historically considered low priorities due to lack of resource and/or awareness.

Towards a global strategy against childhood cancer

The different types of childhood malignancies represent as a whole less than 4% of all cancers. As a result, the professional community dealing with these problems often relies on “standards of care” that are based on retrospective studies or other soft evidence. Difficulties in gathering sufficiently large patient studies may also play a role in the modest advances made in the fight against childhood cancer in recent years. Moreover, biomedical progress is generating a growing number of potentially more effective and tolerable treatment options such as cell therapies, differentiating agents, monoclonal antibodies, molecular targeted therapy, etc…, each one needing separate validation in the paediatric age group. Hence the urgent need to encourage any effort that might pull together paediatric haematology-oncology professionals. Dynamic internet tools such a user-driven content management systems, relational databases, e-learning and telemedicine may take advantage of the possible scarcity of infrastructures and induce major advances in patient care. C2C seeks to promote these tools.

What we would like our contribution to be

The intent of C2C is to give a small but measurable contribution to the promotion of worldwide communication and collaboration that may improve the cure of all children with cancer and severe hematological diseases. In coordination with other initiatives sharing similar goals, C2C will support any effort related to the interchange of experience and knowledge among institutions and professionals caring for children with onco-haematological disorders in low income areas. This support will include professional education opportunities and expert advice, family support programs, user-friendly web-based management tools, supporting the creation of national networks and associations dealing with childhood cancer and blood disorders in low-resource environments. Access to reference management, scientific literature, subscription to major medical journals, support for statistical analysis, open peer review, and English language editing of scientific manuscripts and grant applications will also be provided. C2C will collaborate with associations and scientific societies providing support to paediatric haematology oncology in developing countries and link to established global organizations (e.g. UNICEF, WHO, SIOP, etc…). There will be no interference with institutional decisions and strategies and all data will be under the total control of an administrator designated by each subscribing paediatric haematology-oncology service.

Principles

• Shared vision, responsibility, mutual respect and understanding, creative and open cooperation will be the founding principles of all collaboration.
• Fostering leadership skills, communication and cooperation both within and among working groups caring for children with severe diseases as an aid to professional growth and well-being, is also a priority objective of C2C.

Who are we

This organization will not be connected to any particular centre but will have a scientific committee including well-recognized experts from different institutions and backgrounds.

Services provided

• Disease information, forums and expert advice.
• Local visits, health professionals and volunteer training.
• Family support programs.
• Procurement of drugs, medical and laboratory equipment as appropriate.
• User-adapted computerized order sheets and databases.
• Support for diagnostic, staging and treatment response evaluation accuracy such as imaging interpretation and reporting, biological samples processing and centralization.
• Data analysis, journal access, open peer review, English language editing for scientific reports and grant applications.
• Logistic and financial support for continuing medical education (international meeting participation, exchange visits, fellowships and internships in well-recognized institutions).
• Research grants.