September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month

September 24, 2014 at 10:54 a.m. | Updated September 24, 2014 at 10:54 a.m.

Sept. 14 was the ACS Third Annual Day at the Ballpark with the St. Louis Cardinals, where Relay For Life volunteers from across the state sold tickets to the game to raise money for Relays. Jordon Geiser, 13, who was diagnosed with Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin's, Stage 3) in July 2011, and his family sold the second most tickets in the state, a total of 325, which earned Jordon the opportunity to throw out one of three honorary first pitches at the game. He is shown above at the game with Cardinals' mascot Fredbird before throwing the pitch.
Sept. 14 was the ACS Third Annual Day at the Ballpark with the St. Louis Cardinals, where Relay For Life volunteers from across the state sold tickets to the game to raise money for Relays. Jordon Geiser, 13, who was diagnosed with Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin's, Stage 3) in July 2011, and his family sold the second most tickets in the state, a total of 325, which earned Jordon the opportunity to throw out one of three honorary first pitches at the game. He is shown above at the game with Cardinals' mascot Fredbird before throwing the pitch.

September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month, and a time to recognize what is being done for pediatric cancer research and advocacy.

Approximately one in 285 children will be diagnosed with cancer before the age of 20 and, unlike many adult cancers, there are few known causes as to why children develop cancer.

Locally, Jordon Geiser, 13, son of Kenny and Angel Geiser, California, was diagnosed with Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin's, Stage 3) in July 2011 and has been in remission since Feb. of 2012. Jordon is two and a half years into remission and needs to make it the five-year mark before the doctor will officially give him a clean bill of health.

"Kenny and Angel have been long-time volunteers with the American Cancer Society," Emily Beydler, ACS, said.

The Geiser family participated in the ACS Third Annual Day at the Ballpark with the St. Louis Cardinals Sept. 14, where they joined volunteers across the state in selling tickets to the game to raise money for area Relays. The Geiser family ultimately raised the second most tickets in the state, 325, which earned Jordon the opportunity to throw out one of three honorary pitches at the game.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) and it's nonprofit, nonpartisan affiliate the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network have been working together to support laws and policies that increase funding for cancer research and the quality of life of all cancer patients and their families, regardless of age. Some noteworthy items that have come into law because of their work include the following:

• Protecting children from being dropped from their health insurance plans when they get sick.

• Banning lifetime dollar caps on coverage and annual dollar limits so those with cancer get access to needed care.

• Allowing families with children with life-threatening illnesses to enroll their children in hospice, which is provided concurrently with disease-directed treatment.

• Enabling dependent children to remain on their parents' health insurance policy up to age 26 (which is huge for college students who have otherwise been dropped if they aren't able to stay enrolled in classes during their treatment).

Regarding research, the ACS is doing the following:

• Given approximately $29 million to fund research specifically related to childhood and adolescent cancer through 56 research grants.

• Doing research to increase the quality of life over the lifespan for people who are diagnosed as children or adolescents and minimize the long-term effects of chemotherapy and radiation.

• Thanks to the work of the American Cancer Society and partner organizations, the mortality rate for childhood cancer has decreased by 50%.

The ACS Moniteau County Relay For Life 2015 will be held June 12, 2015 at the Moniteau County Fairgrounds, California. Registration is already underway. Those interested in participating can go online to register at www.relayforlife.org/MoniteauCoMo. The theme for the 2015 Relay is "Relay: It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year", a Christmas in June theme.

The ACS is hosting a Pink Out football game to raise awareness for breast cancer when the California Pintos football team hosts the Osage Indians Oct. 10 at Riley Field, California.

To purchase a t-shirt for Pink Out, contact Kara Korte at 573-645-4852.