Miracle Monday: Tiny donations make big difference for patients

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - It’s Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and we’re highlighting the programs offered at Children’s Hospital of Georgia that help the tiniest of patients overcome various cancers.

This week, you will soon see gold ribbons lining the outside the hospital.

These ribbons are placed to raise awareness about pediatric cancer.

The hospital has specially trained doctors to identify and treat cancers and blood disorders in kids.

“For pediatric cancer, the recognition that somebody has cancer is really important so that it’s recognized early on, so that patients can be treated at a lower stage because it really impacts the outcome,” said Dr. Amir Mian, chief of pediatric hematology and oncology at the hospital.

He says pediatric cancer treatments have changed significantly over the years.

“Now for common pediatric cancers for example like leukemia, lymphoma, the survival is about 80 to 85, sometimes 90%, just depends on the type,” he said. “The outcome has been so much improved, and that’s what drives us to work every day because it’s not an easy job to do.”

He says the goal is to grow programs and offer every treatment possible that a patient would need.

Among the new services are bone marrow transplants and pediatric immune therapy.

The hospital is a not-for-profit, so your donations make programs like these possible.

“For any large program, it’s always smaller donations which really have a bigger impact, and there are many examples when you look around that show how smaller donations have really made a big difference,” Mian said.

Mian says this hospital is special because you don’t have to travel to another city or state to receive treatment for various cancers.

“If somebody has a diagnosis that is harder to treat, then you want to get care closer to home in a patient-centered program,” Mian said, “and that’s what we are, and we’re proud to be a part of the community.”

One way to help

If you’re looking to kids with pediatric cancer, think about ing Brave the Shave. Participants are asked to raise $100 or more and then get their heads shaved Sept. 29.

To learn how to sign up or donate, visit ttps://fundraise.givesmart.com/vf/BravetheShave.

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