Spring 2008
The Global Eye.
Spring has come to the DECF offices, bringing lots of new activity and hope for children around the world as many projects continue to blossom. We welcome you to this latest edition of The Global Eye, sharing just some of the happenings in the worldwide Rb community.
From bowling in New Jersey to blues in Toronto, fundraising activities and family events have been taking place across North America and the UK recently. We also introduce the new family support group developing in San Francisco.
Genetics can be a very confusing subject, especially if there is no prior history of retinoblastoma in the family. Nadia Prigoda, molecular biologist at Retinoblastoma Solutions genetics lab in Toronto, puts mosaicism under the microscope, unraveling the mystery of heritable RB1 mutations that happen after the point of conception.
How does a resource-limited country approach the provision of effective retinoblastoma care when there are more than 1,400 newly affected children each year? Beijing/Toronto based ophthalmologist, Junyang Zhao reveals recent developments in the Chinese National Retinoblastoma Strategy.
Rati's Challenge.
Kenya's retinoblastoma community is an active team of dedicated people, moving forward the opportunity for optimal care of children and their families. Brenda Gallie, Morgan Livingstone and Abby White reflect on a highly successful visit to Kenya last November, and present the second Rati's Challenge report, "Hope for Africa".
Prompt diagnosis and treatment is a child's only hope for vision saving therapy, and delayed diagnosis can kill a child. Abby and Linda were born a world away from one another, but their families faced a common challenge when retinoblastoma entered their lives - the battle to access essential care. Meet the girls and find out how their experiences have become part of an innovative teaching tool for schoolchildren around the world.
Pain is a tricky subject for any parent, but expecially for the parent of a young child with cancer. Dr Judith Kingston (paediatric oncologist at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, England) and Dr Ian Clark (paediatric ophthalmologist at Children's Hospital of Winnipeg, Canada) answer your questions on pain and retinoblastoma.
With so many different experiences for the child with retinoblastoma, how do you know if your child is in pain, and what can you do to prevent or reduce that pain? DECF resident Child Life Specialist, Morgan Livingstone, probes the subject of a child's responses to pain, and offers a practical guide to managing the pain experienced by young retinoblastoma patients.
Raising awareness of one rare cancer is a huge task in a country as vast and populous as India. Shobha Mocheria, video producer at L,V, Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad, discusses the centre's retinoblastoma awareness campaigns, and the impact of poster and mdeia based approaches to expanding knowledge of photoleukocoria as an early sign of "the curable childhood eye cancer".
When Maria Pezzente first spotted a strange white glow in her baby's eye, she could never have imagined where it would lead her. After her son's diagnosis of trilateral retinoblastoma, Martia began a mission to raise awareness of white reflex in photography within the global photographic industry, as a way of reaching thousands of parents throughout the world. She demonstrates how one woman really can make a huge difference to many, many lives.
Flutter on by for some fun activities, exploring the amazing life of the butterfly.
A selection of your letters from the mail bag, including awareness raising, treatment protocols and child life success at the ocularist.
A list of happenings in the global retinoblastoma community.
Privacy | Terms Of Use | Disclaimer | Site Map | About This Site
Your computer must be running Java to view certain elements of this website.
Please click here for information about how to switch on Java.