Thank you for opening this letter. And for caring about kids fighting cancer. What a year. We can all agree that 2020 is not a year we...
A Letter from Dean – December 2020
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Childhood Cancer
Helping Childhood Cancer Families Carry The Weight
When you donate to Rally, you fund much-needed childhood cancer research—but there’s more to it. Childhood cancer changes EVERYTHING. It...
Rally Kids Maylee & Kiki: #FORTHEIRFUTURE Of Friendship
When you give to Rally, you aren’t just funding research—you are funding childhoods. You’re giving kids the chance to experience life,...
Meet Rally Kid Lex: A Fun-Loving 11-Year-Old Who’s Fighting Blood Cancer
There’s no way around it: Childhood cancer is sneaky, and it happens unexpectedly. Symptoms can be mild and are often confused with other...
A Letter from Elaine
It’s been fifteen and a half years since a malignant tumor the size of a grapefruit was removed from the left kidney of our son, James....
Words of Wisdom from a Brain Tumor Mom
In honor of Brain Tumor Awareness Month, I asked Melissa Mott—one of my favorite Brain Tumor Moms—a few questions. I really enjoy her...
Why I Chose Pediatric Oncology and Research
Rally Researcher and pediatric oncologist Dr. Michael Kinnaman received a Rally Postdoctoral and Clinical Research Fellow Grant. In part...
A Letter from Rally Kid Peyton to Families Battling Cancer
Dear families experiencing childhood cancer and pediatric palliative care doctors, I am a Rally Kid and a first-year student at the...
The Truth About Palliative Care—It’s Better Than You Might Think
For many pediatric cancer patients and their families, palliative care is a beacon of comfort during the extreme discomfort of symptoms,...
Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro For Kids Fighting Cancer
I sometimes find myself wondering what it must feel like to be a kid who gets the devastating news that he or she has cancer. Throughout...
Vincristine: Controlled Distribution
First, thank you to all the families who reached out and shared your children’s stories with us. Thank you, 11 Alive and reporter Kaitlyn...
Vincristine Shortage Call to Action
From Dean Crowe Vincristine is the most commonly used childhood cancer chemotherapy drug, and it works by stopping the cancer cells from...
Vincristine Shortage – Note To Pediatric Oncologists
Dear Pediatric Oncologists, As I’m sure you’re aware, the vincristine shortage is very real. But what I want you to know is that I am...
Vincristine Shortage – Update and Action
To the childhood cancer community: As Chair of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), I am sending this letter to the childhood cancer...
A Name that Makes Me Cringe
I think this is true of just about everyone I know. I know it is true of me. There are just certain names that bring up bad memories....
Childhood Cancer
What is Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)?
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a blood cancer of the myeloid cells that normally form white blood cells, red blood cells or platelets. AML originates in the bone marrow, where the leukemia cells build up and overcrowd normal cells. The leukemia cells often move into the bloodstream fairly quickly. AML is the second most common form of childhood leukemia, after acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). AML is much more common in adults versus children; the average age of diagnosis is 68. There are...
Dean’s Letter – December 2025
Twenty years ago, Rally was birthed from a prayer circle in a driveway. William Olson, a junior in high school, was battling brain cancer for the second time. A group of women gathered in the driveway three days a week for over a year to pray him through treatment. That is where I started learning about childhood cancer. It was awful. One day William had a horrific reaction to a transfusion and almost died. I looked at William’s mom and asked a simple question that changed everything: “What...
A Message From Nora
Hi! My name is Nora. I am 7 years old and I have a blood cancer called ALL — for a second time. The first time, I was 4 years old and I had to miss a lot of fun things because I was in the hospital. It wasn’t fun doing the treatments, and we had to go to another city for my medicines. After a while I got to go back to my dance and tumbling classes with my friends. I love playing with my brothers, too! But then the cancer came back. I was so sad. We have to go to a hospital in another town,...
Rally Kid Nora: Fighting for Her Future — Again.
Dance, tumbling, playing outside and all things pink — these are the joys that light up Rally Kid Nora’s world. She loves to go to school and spend time with her two brothers, just like most kids her age. Nora isn’t like most kids, however. Her life and activities have been altered by childhood cancer. Nora was just 4 years old when her parents heard the words, “Your child has high-risk B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).” Even after treatment began, the shock hadn’t worn off. “We were...
Nora’s Journey With Cancer: The Spirit of a Fighter
Like most 4-year-old girls, Nora was full of life — happy, energetic and always on the go. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until her parents noticed a deep bruise on her shoulder blade. They didn’t think much of it at first, but then more bruises began to appear in places where they shouldn’t. Nora also started feeling unusually tired, which wasn’t typical for this spunky girl. Her parents chalked it up to being “Disney tired” from a recent magical family trip. But when Nora spiked a fever...
What Are the Most Common Childhood Cancers?
It’s no secret that adults get cancer. But children get cancer, too -- and it’s more common than you might think. Worldwide, 300,000 kids are diagnosed with cancer every year. And in the U.S., 1 in 285 children will be diagnosed with cancer before they turn 20. There are many types of childhood cancers. Some cancers are more common in children than adults, and there are some cancers that only children get. Here’s a look at some of the most common childhood cancers. Leukemia The most common...