There is nothing scarier than for an individual to be diagnosed with cancer. Like a slap in the face comes the realization that the supposed cure for this severe illness may just add insult to injury when the patient is told that their entire personal appearance will be changed and that most likely they will lose all of their hair!
St. Baldrick’s is a head shaving event that is meant for those who participate to be able to demonstrate their support for children with cancer both financially and physically. They show that they, too, are willing to be hairless in order to support a very serious cause.
One respectful young man from Bartlett, Illinois, Sean Murphy, joined the ranks of those that sat in front of the clippers. Before that fateful day, Murphy had beautiful red locks of hair that he sacrificed to display that he is willing to help in any way possible obtain a cure for this horrific disease.
If you did not realize it, be aware that more children are lost to cancer each year in the United States than of all other childhood diseases combined. Statistics prove that about one in 300 boys and one in 333 girls will have cancer before the age of 20. Thanks to funding, like that of St. Baldrick’s, research has given professionals the ability to diagnose earlier and find more cures. Thankfully, due to this research, approximately 85% of all children today that have the most common type of cancer will live their life out completely. For not-so-common varieties, the percentages are still low and hope may be lost, thus the need for more funding.
By the time childhood cancer is detected, since the cause has nothing to do with their lifestyle, it is often too late to prevent or stop since it has already spread. Treatment is different, too, especially when there is a subculture of one of the dozen or more childhood cancers; variations on the norm make it difficult to even know how to treat. To top it off, chemotherapy and radiation can have a lifelong affect, creating chronic health issues, even if the child survives.
Due to this entire conundrum, St. Baldrick’s funds research to improvise supportive care for children that have cancer. Thanks to young men and women, such as Sean Murphy, St. Baldrick’s receives the financial support to do their good work. Young Murphy may have just saved a fellow teen’s life. Way to go Sean, we are proud of you!
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