89,000 Reasons to Recognize AYA Cancer Awareness Week
“People sometimes forget that pediatric oncology is not just smiling bald kids. Teens get cancer, too!”
This week marks Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Cancer Awareness Week (April 4-10). This annual awareness week is an opportunity to shine a light on the unique challenges that teen and young adult cancer patients and survivors face.
According to the National Cancer Institute, approximately 89,000 young adults (ages 15 to 39) are diagnosed with cancer each year in the United States, which accounts for about five percent of cancer diagnoses nationally. Lymphoma and thyroid cancer are the most common cancers among AYAs ages 15-24, while breast cancer and thyroid cancer are the most common for older young adults. Whether a teen or young adult is treated by a pediatric oncologist or an adult oncologist typically depends on the type of cancer: brain tumors, leukemias, osteosarcomas, and Ewing sarcomas are often treated at a Children’s Oncology Group member institution.
Our Stewart Initiative Event Calendar lists some of the terrific virtual events planned by our friends in the AYA cancer space in the coming days and weeks, from creative writing workshops to symposiums and conferences.
The Stewart Initiative is a Children’s Cancer Cause program launched in 2020. The Stewart Initiative website - childhoodcancersurvivorship.org - has information and resources aimed at the AYA population to help teens and young adults navigate concerns about issues such as intimacy and sexuality, workplace rights, and much more. Although our Stewart Initiative is aimed at childhood cancer survivors (a population that includes teens), much of the survivorship information also relates to those diagnosed as young adults.
Research has shown that outcomes for cancer patients and survivors can be improved with a strong support community. One aspect of the Stewart Initiative that we encourage survivors to explore is our sponsored MyLifeLine discussion board, a place for young adult survivors to support one another with information, opinions, stories, and inspiration on topics like post-treatment challenges.
Visit childrenscause.mylifeline.org to get the conversation started!
Several of our College Scholar alumni were diagnosed as teens and are outspoken advocates for improving the social and emotional care for other teens and young adults with cancer.
Related: Stewart Initiative Resources on Social and Emotional Health →
Some of the advocacy projects we have supported through our College Scholars Program include creating online forums and mentorship programs to form stronger support communities for teen and young adult survivors. 2019 Scholar Amelia Corl, for example, recruited other students on her college campus who are also survivors of serious childhood illnesses. Together, they’re working to tackle policies around medical leave, student accessibility, and student health resources — finding solutions to the same problems that plagued her as a patient and student.
Other young advocates, like Sequoia White, are working with their local children’s hospitals to create more teen-friendly activities and programs for older patients spending time on pediatric oncology wards. “I know firsthand how lonely being in the hospital can feel and how difficult it can be without people your age to relate to,” says Sequoia. “Life in a hospital is never fun but I believe there’s a way to make it a little easier for teenage patients through connection with others.”