Cancer doesn't stop for Christmas

Children and young people with cancer are facing a festive season without the magic that many of us hope for. Instead of making precious memories with their families, treatment means that they’re facing weeks spent many miles from home. Donate today and make sure children and young people facing cancer treatment this winter can be with their families during the toughest time, at one of our Homes from Home.

For families facing cancer, a Home from Home is more than a free place to stay. It’s a place that feels like home. It’s having the time for a home-cooked meal together or a mug of hot chocolate with a bedtime story. When the snow starts to fall, it’s the chance to put on wellies and build a snowman in the garden. But most of all, when everything else is uncertain, it’s a chance to just be together.

Cancer doesn’t have to mean families are torn apart. That special moments are lost. You can keep families together this winter.

Why is cancer in children different from cancer in adults?

Children and young people with cancer need special treatment because their cancer is different to adults’ and it can only be treated in certain hospitals, many miles from home. 71% of young people and families say they are struggling to meet the costs of travelling to treatment. Our Homes from Home give families a place to stay, free of charge, near key hospitals while their loved one undergoes treatment.

How prevalent is cancer in children?

Although survival rates are over 80%, cancer remains the single largest cause of death from disease in children and young people in the UK.

The impact of cancer on young lives is far more than medical. Their anxieties are deep. Their education, mental health and social lives suffer. Their future feels very uncertain.

What Young Lives vs Cancer Do

Today, 12 children and young people will hear the news that they have cancer. In an instant, their whole world can feel like it’s turned upside down.

Playtime is stopped. Independence is taken. Confidence is stolen. It can result in years of education missed, careers put on hold just as they’re starting. It’s watching countless opportunities pass by as debt begins to pile up. The impact of cancer on young lives is more than medical. That’s why we exist.

Young Lives vs Cancer is the only charity in the UK with specialist social workers who provide tailored support to children and young people with cancer, and their families.  We help them to navigate the emotional and practical impact of cancer. And we stop at nothing to make their voices heard and their unique needs understood, so they can get the right care and support at the right time.