On May 19, 2006 our daughter Lucy was diagnosed with a Pediatric Low Grade Astrocytoma (PLGA) brain tumor on the optic nerve behind her right eye. PLGAs are the most commonly diagnosed type of tumor in kids and represent the largest cause of pediatric tumor deaths. Regretfully, though, little is known about PLGAs and the few, unreliable treatment options haven't been updated in more than two decades.
On May 23, 2010, we will ride in the PLGA Foundation Geared Up For Kids Ride under the banner of Team Lucy. Funds raised by Team Lucy will go to the PLGA Foundation to fund PLGA research. In the last five years, the families behind the PLGA Foundation have raised and distributed more than $6 million toward a cure for PLGA.
As parents, we cannot and will not stop until we know there is a cure for Lucy.
About Pediatric Low Grade Astrocytoma (PLGA)
PLGA is the most commonly diagnosed brain tumor and represents the largest cause of tumor deaths in children, yet regretfully, it remains an "orphan disease":
- no advocacy organization,
- no change in survival rates,
- no steady stream of funding for research, and
- no meaningful change to the state of understanding of this disease.
The two treatment options that exist for Lucy and other kids are only partially effective and frequently come with devastating side effects. That these two chemotherapy regimens were developed more than 20 years ago, and little has been done to advance knowledge and treatment of this dreadful disease since then, is unacceptable to us.
For more information on PLGA visit PLGA Foundation.
