Whenever we hear about a child who has been diagnosed with cancer it is a tragedy, but there is no better feeling then hearing that a child beats cancer. Surviving cancer at such a young age takes strength and courage to complete all the tests and treatments. After all the suffering and joy have going through and beating cancer are children completely safe? According to research they are more likely to have recurring strokes if a first stroke already occurred.
Null Hypothesis: Cancer has no relationship to the recurring strokes
Alternative Hypothesis: Cancer has a relationship to the recurring strokes
A study from The University of California San Francisco’s brain center shows that childhood cancer survivors that suffer a stroke have double the risk of a second stroke. Findings shown in Neurology a medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology support Sabine Mueller, MD, PhD in saying, “we are saving more children with life-saving interventions.” The only down side is these interventions are said to be having life long effects. Of 271 respondents who reported a first stroke, 70 reported a second stroke. This is double the rate of the normal population. Patients who had cranial radiation therapy were 33% more likely to have a reoccurring stroke. All this information appear in the following study.
Cancer doesn’t seem to cause the stroke. The third variable of radiation therapy that targets the brain causes the first stroke. The children get cancer and then the treatment they have to face to save their life is causing the first stroke, but why is it more likely to face another stroke?
With the current research nobody can understand why the reoccurring stroke occurs, but researchers have figured out how to know who high risk patients are. Knowing this treatments will need to be designed to prevent reoccurring strokes in children after facing the horrors of cancer. The study done was the only one I could find, but from the results this is a field of study that needs more research done to fix the problem presented.
It’s sad to see children in pain due to these cancers, but it’s even sadder to still have to see them go through pain even after they have been labeled as “cured”. But to assist on the after effects of childhood cancers The Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS) was created. Their goal was to gain new knowledge about these long-term effects of cancer and the therapy used to cure these cancers. The knowledge that they gain would help better treatments and create strategies to eventually minimize these side-effects and long-term effects. They also want to educate survivors about these things. This study could help the cause mentioned in your blog, to read more on it visit https://ccss.stjude.org/learn-more.html