Head-Shaving Event to Raise Funds for Childhood Cancer

Heroes in North Phoenix Sought to Participate in Nationwide Head-Shaving Event to Raise Funds for Childhood Cancer Research – April 4, 2009

Phoenix, AZ – Men, women and children baldly stand in solidarity with the 160,000 kids diagnosed with cancer each year while raising money to fund pediatric cancer research. The St. Baldrick’s Foundation has issued a lofty challenge to everyone who wants to help raise money for childhood cancer research: Be a hero for kids with cancer by shaving your head in return for pledges of financial support from friends and family.

Participants find that shaving their head in solidarity with the 160,000 children who are diagnosed with cancer each year is a small sacrifice in comparison to what these children endure, and want to raise money to help find a cure for children with cancer now and in the future.

The St. Baldrick’s Volunteer Organizer for the Phoenix head-shaving fundraising event  is Cara Hughes (602) 725-8723, cara@8020marketing.biz. Visit   http://www.stbaldricks.org/ to view the entire schedule of activities and to sign up to have your head shaved! 

Location:
Desert Ridge Marketplace (pending)
Event Date:  April 4, 2009
Start Time: 10:00 A.M.
Address:  21001 N. Tatum Blvd., Ste., 46-1515
Phoenix, AZ 85050.

“The money raised through St. Baldrick’s dramatically impacts the survival rate for children with cancer. Seventy-five percent off all children with cancer here at Phoenix Children’s are cured of the disease,” says to Dr. Jessica Boklan, pediatric oncologist at the Center for Cancer & Blood Disorders at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.  “The reason the cure rate is so dramatic is because kids with cancer are participants in clinical trials.” The rate nationally is equally impressive – fifty percent of all children with cancer participate in clinical trials, compared to just 2% of adults with cancer. Monies collected from St. Baldrick’s events fund research projects and clinical trials at the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders.

St. Baldrick’s awards grants to institutions that meet stringent criteria and share the foundation’s commitment to fiscal responsibility and emphasis on research. St. Baldrick’s volunteer event organizers led the way to raising over $17 million in 2008 alone and St. Baldrick’s also considers these efforts in local communities to assist in determining grant recipients.

“Our ability to provide cutting edge, family-centered care to children is positively impacted by the community’s investment in our dedication to clinical research,” says Michael Etzl, Jr., MD, Division Chief of the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Phoenix Children’s Hospital.

In the spring of 2008, barbers, shavees and volunteers, located here in Phoenix, had the privilege of raising over $54,000 for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation.  In the fall of 2008, Phoenix Children’s Hospital was awarded an $81,000 grant from the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, funds which will allow Phoenix Children’s Hospital to continue participating in cutting edge research, bringing new and novel treatments to children in Arizona and around the world, who have been diagnosed with a malignancy.

About Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Phoenix Children’s Hospital
The Center is the Southwest’s largest provider of childhood cancer services and a national leader in pediatric oncology research. The team of medical practitioners includes 10 physicians, each with a specific area of expertise within the hematology and oncology fields.  Encouraging each physician to specialize in certain diseases has allowed the Center’s physicians to collectively keep up with the latest advancements in the treatment of cancer and hematologic disorders.  As a result, the Center is able to provide top-notch care to all of its patients. For more information, visit the Hospital’s Web site at http://www.phoenixchildrens.com/.

About Phoenix Children’s Hospital
Phoenix Children’s Hospital is Arizona’s only licensed children’s hospital, providing world-class care in more than 40 pediatric specialties to our state’s sickest kids. Though Phoenix Children’s is one of the ten largest freestanding children’s hospitals in the country, rapid population growth in Arizona means the Hospital must grow as well. Phoenix Children’s recently announced a $588 million expansion plan to bring its special brand of family-centered care to even more patients and families. The plan includes a significant upgrade of the Hospital’s current campus, an aggressive physician recruitment effort, and new satellite centers in high growth areas of the Valley. For more information, visit the Hospital’s Web site at http://www.phoenixchildrens.com/.

About the St. Baldrick’s Foundation
Since its inception nine years ago, St. Baldrick’s events have raised over $50.8 million for childhood cancer research, with over 72,490 shavees at over 1,700 head-shavings in 46 states and 18 countries.  In 2008 alone, over 560 events have been held throughout the USA.

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation makes grants to research institutions to find new cures for childhood cancer, and to find treatments to ensure a better quality of life for patients and survivors.  The Foundation funds research projects conducted by established pediatric cancer experts, as well as younger professionals who will be the experts of tomorrow.  Funds also enable hundreds of local institutions to participate in national pediatric cancer clinical trials, offering the best available care for every child.   The St. Baldrick’s Foundation is grateful to its many volunteers (bald or not!) and donors, including HeadBlade Ultimate Headcare, PartnerRe, elope and QBE for making life-saving childhood cancer research possible.  For more information about St. Baldrick’s, please call 1-888-899-BALD or visit http://www.stbaldricks.org/

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