National Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Week 2024

 Every year, teens and young adults are recognized as cancer warriors and survivors for National Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Cancer Week. This year, it falls from April 1 to April 5. From the Children's Cancer Cause's website, the purpose is:

"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."

AYA week encompasses young people ages 15 to 39. While this is an uncommon age range for cancer, it's not as uncommon as you might think. Some 89,000 young people are diagnosed with cancer in the US annually, and some cancers are even most common in young adults and adolescents (x). These include thyroid cancer, lymphomas, and primary bone cancer.

AYA cancer survivors face unique challenges, from navigating more health problems than others their age due to long term side effects to peers not being able to understand their experience. Through CCC, one survivor said:

“It never ends. You never go back to the life you once had.” - Hodgkin’s lymphoma survivor, diagnosed at 15

So this April, take a moment to support your local AYA survivors and warriors by checking out their stories online or supporting research for those cancers.



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