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To make a contribution please make checks payable to:
Kisses for Patrick
PO Box 393
Linden, NJ 07036
*Contributions are not tax deductible*
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Our Inspiration |
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My name is Patrick and I turned 3 years old on July 2, 2006. I love dinosaurs, The Wiggles, Elmo, cats, my friends and my family. I can say my alphabet, the Pledge of Allegiance, and name some dinosaurs. I am a wonderful, loving, happy boy who was diagnosed with
ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia )
on May 31st, 2005.
After some unusual bruising, fever and a rash, my parents took me to the E.R. The blood test showed some abnormalities in my blood. After further testing, I was diagnosed with ALL. I am feeling good and working on getting better, read my journal to see my progress!
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ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia)
ALL is a "liquid" tumor or cancer of the blood that starts in the bone marrow and spreads to the bloodstream
(the term leukemia comes from a German word for white blood).
ALL is the most common pediatric cancer, accounting for 35% of all new cancer cases in children.
What things determine risk?
The overall cure rate for ALL remains one of the best among all human cancers. Currently, approximately 75% of children are cured,
meaning that after treatment, their cancer never comes back. Several factors can influence the treatment type and cure rates.
Age at diagnosis:
Based on age, the best prognosis group includes children between the ages of 1 and 9. Here, cure rates approach 80%.
White blood cell count at diagnosis:
Children with very high white blood cell counts at diagnosis (over 50,000)
are at increased risk and require more aggressive therapy.
Presence of central nervous system disease at diagnosis: Only 3-4 % of children have blast cells in the fluid around the brain
and spinal column at the time of diagnosis. Such a finding alters the treatment plan for these children.
Response to therapy
: In the relatively recent past, researchers have discovered that children whose disease is slow to respond
to initial therapy are also at greater risk. Those children who are ?slow early responders? (measured by the disappearance of blasts in the blood and/or bone marrow) may require a change in the plan for therapy following the first phase of treatment, known as induction.
Chromosomal alterations in the leukemia cell:
Cancer cells often display genetic mistakes that have been acquired, meaning that they were not passed down from the parents to the child. At least 60% of ALL cases include such abnormalities; this can also affect the response to treatment.
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