Patient Services Profile: The Trish Green Back To School Program for the Child with Cancer
Each year, approximately, 12,100 children are diagnosed with cancer in the
Returning to school can offer a feel of normalcy for families after treatment.
In an effort to support families and ease the transition from active treatment to daily life for pediatric cancer patients, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and Lance Armstrong Foundation developed a program to increase communication among healthcare professionals, parents, patients and school officials (campus nurses, counselors, teachers, and administrators).
The objectives of the program are to educate attendees and enable them to:
- Describe common childhood cancers and treatments
- Identify challenges cancer survivors face upon returning to school and throughout their time in school and college
- Understand laws that protect childhood cancer survivors’ rights
- Have strategies to help meet the students’ short- and long-term educational needs
- Access resources that support schools and families including those from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the Lance Armstrong Foundation
Teachers can learn what accommodations might be needed for their returning cancer student and can help classmates understand what the student is going through. Because of their daily contact with the student, teachers also play a key role if any health concerns should arise in the classroom.
Cancer survivorship is a lifelong journey, and school reentry is a major milestone in that journey.
For more on the Trish Green Back To School Program, visit your local Society chapter for live educational programs and materials, videos and other printed resources. Online program information at The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Website.
Friends of Heroes is a national Light the Night Friends and Family team. We are comprised of moms, dads, families and friends compelled to help find a cure for blood cancers.
