A Point Loman has started a fundraising drive benefiting critical cancer support programs at the Peckham Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego.

“I have been a member of the La Playa Unit of the Rady’s Children’s Hospital Auxiliary for one year,” said Mandy Havlik noting, “We help raise money to continue funding cancer support programs that are specifically designed to help very young patients and their families. We are always looking for new members. I guarantee you will have fun, make new friends, and be inspired by the impact we make on families and their loved ones who are impacted by cancer.”

Celebration of Champions, the La Playa Auxiliary Unit of Rady’s signature event, celebrates and honors children who received services through the Peckham Center at Rady’s. Each year, Rady Children’s offers over 1,400 families a support system funded largely by Celebration of Champions. Parent liaisons, who have experience with their own child’s diagnosis, support parents through a shared experience. Child Life specialists explain procedures to patients, making sure they understand what to expect in a calm and comforting way. These programs and others are only made possible through Celebration of Champions.

Another Point Loman, Nicole Santos, her family, and her son Carter, are just a few of the many who Rady has helped battle childhood cancer and come out successfully on the other end.

“We are so grateful for the amazing doctors, nurses, and staff who are truly the heartbeat of Rady’s,” said Santos, noting her son, Carter, was diagnosed with BCell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in December 2018 at age 5. “As you can imagine this turned our world upside down. Immediately we were flooded with fear and the question of will he survive, and what does the journey ahead look like?”

After being diagnosed with blood cancer, Carter was admitted to Rady’s and started treatment. The Peckham Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders became the Santos family’s home for the next month beginning their journey into the world of childhood cancer.

“Carter was in treatment for 1,210 days and in the hospital for 100 days,” said his mother who added, “He had 17 blood transfusions, over 1,000 doses of chemotherapy and he was put under anesthesia 36 times. During that 3 ½-year period, his strength and spirit were nothing short of heroic and inspiring. We draw from him to show us that we are capable of so much more than we realize.”

But, as Nicole Santos pointed out, childhood cancer impacts not just the person afflicted, but everyone else in the family. Nonetheless, she added, there were some positives to be taken from the experience.

“The good is the (hospital) community was incredibly supportive and that was amazing for our whole family, not just Carter,” she said. “It restores your faith in humanity to know that there are a lot of people out there who care.”

Of their oncologist Dr. Kuo, who treated Carter, Nicole noted: “He was incredible, reassuring us that Rady’s is on the same protocol or treatment plan as St Jude’s. He had a panel of doctors across the country consulting him on Carter’s case, reassuring us they would do everything they could. This is just one example of the caliber of care provided by the medical team at the Peckham center.”

Carter, now age 10, made it through the experience, and mom Nicole said there was a “lot of relief and a lot to celebrate” at the end of his treatment. Though there is no guarantee Carter will never relapse, Nicole said, “We hold onto that celebration of his recovery, and continue to hope that this is not a journey he will ever have to walk again. We feel incredibly fortunate to have Rady here to be able to treat our children.”

Havlik encourages people, if they are interested in getting involved, to become a member of the Rady’s Children’s Hospital Auxiliary, or make a donation to help fund programs that support families impacted by cancer. The link to donate is at radyfoundation.org.

RADY CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL

A nonprofit, 511-bed pediatric-care facility dedicated to excellence in care, research, and teaching, Rady is the only hospital in San Diego dedicated exclusively to pediatric health care and the region’s only designated pediatric trauma center. Affiliated with the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, Rady’s is also the region’s teaching hospital for the next generation of pediatric physicians.

The institution is also a major pediatric clinical research center, working in collaboration with world-renowned institutions, including UC San Diego and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Rady’s mission is to restore, sustain and enhance the health and developmental potential of children through excellence in care, education, research, and advocacy. It is also to be a nationally and internationally recognized leader for excellence in patient care, education, research, and advocacy.

In October 2010, Rady opened its Acute Care Pavilion, making it the largest children’s hospital in California based on admissions. The facility helps to ensure that no child will ever be turned away because beds are filled. Parents and children come to Rady nationwide to benefit from the facility’s nationally renowned physicians, and because of its focus on research, teaching and innovation in helping patients receive state-of-the-art care. Through Rady’s Center for Healthier Communities and the Chadwick Center for Children and Families, families are offered the promise of a healthier future.