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Annual report and review 2018

Your donation

Every krona makes a difference in the fight against childhood cancer. Our promise to our donors is to ensure the greatest benefit from the funds we raise.

The Swedish Childhood Cancer Fund works to prevent and combat childhood cancers. We also work to achieve better care and to improve quality of life for children with cancer and their families. We work actively to achieve our vision of eradicating childhood cancer. This is how we use your donation.

The majority of the funds we raise are used to finance research. This is a long-term and absolutely vital contribution to preventing, and eventually eradicating, childhood cancers. At the same time, we work actively to provide advice and support measures for children with cancer and their families, as well as to raise awareness and increase knowledge in the community about these diseases.

For this reason, we always carefully assess our initiatives to ensure the greatest benefit from the funds we raise.

Where your money goes

Graf som visar fördelningen av finanser.

*Our key figures according to Swedish Fundraising Control differ from those above. This is because our calculation model includes interest income and similar income items from the Swedish Childhood Cancer Fund’s long-term security holdings.

Three missions help to eradicate childhood cancer

To achieve our vision of eradicating childhood cancer, we need to provide more resources to research. It is also important that those suffering from childhood cancer – both the children and their families – get the advice and support they need and are entitled to. Our third mission, information, is crucial for the Swedish Childhood Cancer Fund to continue to fund research and provide vital advice and support. The information mission raises awareness and increases knowledge about childhood cancer and why your donation is important.

Research and training

The Swedish Childhood Cancer Fund is the single largest financier of research into childhood cancer in Sweden. We also support the development of new treatment methods and professional training in paediatric oncology. The Fund granted a total of SEK 274 million in 2018 to causes such as:

  • This year, 170 paediatric nurses and nurses’ aides, non-paediatric nurses and doctors were trained in paediatric oncology nursing.
  • SEK 137 million was granted in the autumn call for proposals. This is a significant increase over last year, allowing the funding of a record number of research projects.
  • To increase recruiting to paediatric oncology and to allow a greater number of clinical research projects, 13 registrar positions in the field of childhood cancer were funded at the end of the year.
  • Co-funding of the Haematological Oncological Clinical Trials Unit (HOPE) at the New Karolinska Hospital for early clinical pharmaceutical trials.
  • Funded 16 placements – an initiative for doctors and nurses in other institutions to do a placement in a paediatric oncology centre.
  • Distributed SEK 62 million to researcher positions in the field of childhood cancer.
  • Distributed SEK 10 million among five grants in the field of medical technology.

Advice and support

We plan, arrange, and further develop important advice and support measures to children with cancer and their families. This contributes to providing children and their families an opportunity for rehabilitation and much-needed recreation. Initiatives in the area, amounting to about SEK 43 million in 2018, went to, among other things:

  • The former Postcode Lottery funded project Maxa Livet has now become a permanent activity. Maxa Livet is a programme for adult survivors of childhood cancer aiming to improve their life situation and give them strength.
  • Held five get-togethers for grandparents of children with cancer, headed by Lennart Björklund, psychotherapist and qualified social worker.
  • Hosted 400 people over the course of the year at Almers Hus for a few days’ or a week’s relaxation and socialisation with others in a similar situation.
  • Ågrenska competence centre held seven stays for families of children with cancer, offering them knowledge about their child’s diagnosis as well as recreation and exchange of experiences with other families.
  • Continuous operations, such as consulting nurses, sibling support coordinators and youth camps and other residential activities.

Information

We work actively to produce and distribute important information and to influence public opinion regarding the issue of cancers in children and teens, which includes initiatives to raise awareness and increase knowledge. The information mission has used its 2018 budget of SEK 58 million for the following initiatives, among others:

  • The opinion drive “The Minister’s Promise”, a follow-up of last year’s drive, “If I were Minister for Health and Social Affairs”.
  • Arranged a seminar during Almedalen Week in which all governing parties agreed on special initiatives in paediatric cancer care.
  • Highlighted current research in childhood cancer as well as current and future challenges for researchers through the 2018 Childhood Cancer Report.
  • Arranged the highly appreciated telethon “The Childhood Cancer Gala – The Swedish Humour Prize”.
  • Provided information about childhood cancers and the Swedish Childhood Cancer Fund’s operations in our own channels, such as social media, our website and our publications, as well as in the press and media.
  • Launched Swedish versions of the Imaginary Friend Society films from the US Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.
  • Published the book Livet på paus (“Life on Hold”), a book for teenagers being treated for cancer. The book was supplemented with a YouTube series featuring three teenagers with cancer.