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Alessandra, an 8-year-old girl full of life and heart, was diagnosed with brain cancer two years ago. But her battle with childhood cancer was a little different than most.

“Alessandra was born with Down syndrome,” said her mother, Tina Ashamalla, “so it’s hard for a child with special needs because they can’t articulate what’s going on. We don’t know if she has headaches, we don’t know if she isn’t feeling well.”

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Wendi Schoffstall first heard of the St. Baldrick’s Foundation when she was asked to photograph Emily, one of the Foundation’s five 2012 Ambassador Kids. At first a sweet girl with the soft smile captured by Wendi’s lens, it didn’t take long for Emily to capture Wendi’s heart.

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By Dean Lee, M.D., Ph.D., St. Baldrick’s Scholar

This March, I had my head shaved by 2012 Ambassador Emily at Brian O’Neill’s Irish Pub in Houston, Texas. This was my second year as a shavee and team captain of the team Natural Killers, named for the key element in my childhood cancer research.

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St. Baldrick’s Honored Child, Cameron, loved the St. Baldrick’s Foundation almost as much as he loved Hot Wheels and his big brother, Connor. He was an avid fixture at local events doing anything he could to help. From handing out t-shirts to serving as an honorary barber, young Cameron was passionate about raising funds and awareness for childhood cancer research. His upbeat and cheerful attitude never failed to make everyone smile.

Diagnosed with medulloblastoma on February 8, 2008, Cameron was treated at Duke Medical Center where he underwent surgery, followed by six weeks of daily radiation to his brain and spinal cord and four months of high-dose chemotherapy. After receiving his chemotherapy in the morning, Cameron would often ride his tricycle happily around Duke Medical Center, which earned him the nickname “Action Jackson” given by one of the center’s doctors. A beam of light to everyone who knew and loved him, Cameron was a resilient fighter who never stopped smiling.

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