Fundacion Europeo para niños con cancer

YEAR REVIEW 2007

Dear sponsors and members of Sol y Vida

During the past year, we have again been in a position to help numerous children to win the battle against cancer. This was possible through your support, for which we would like to express a heartfelt Thank You to all of you! A special Thanks goes to „Damas brasileras“, a Brazilian charity in Quito, which helped us again in 2007 with a large donation of medications.

The more than 50 children that are currently cared for by Sol y Vida all come from various parts of the country to the public children’s hospital, the Baca Ortiz in Quito. Ecuador only has two public children’s hospitals that specialize in severe cases, and those are in Guayaquil and in Quito. Thus, many of the children that come to the capital have travelled a long way, from the entire highland area, the northern coastal area and the rainforest (Oriente). Sometimes families have to travel for hours by canoe or on horseback to the nearest road and then spend several more hours on a bus.

At the Baca Ortiz, the children who suffer from cancer are treated by two oncologists. The children that Sol y Vida supports are looked after by Dr. Aliz Borja. There is a very close and trustful cooperation between her and our foundation; she sends those kids that are especially in need to our office which is located right next door to the hospital. Here, two mornings and one afternoon a week, our hired social worker, Ligia Perez, and a volunteer helper take care of the families.

Sol y Vida finances a large portion of the costs for chemotherapy, radiation, MRI and CT scans. The children’s parents have to help cover some of the cost, depending on their financial situation. During the past year, Sol y Vida spent 43,000 US$ on medications and medical examinations, this amounts to an average of 3500 US$ per month.

A typical morning at the Sol y Vida office:

The small waiting area at the "Sol y Vida" office is crowded as usual. Mothers rock their crying babies, fathers stare silently at the wall, brothers and sisters play with the lego scattered around. One by one, the families are called into the office by members of the Sol y Vida foundation. There they are, sitting at the desk and telling their stories: Little Britany, 1½ years old , is recovering from surgery that removed a tumor; she’s doing quite well, she needs to have radiation next. Eleven-year-old Jennifer from Ibarra, who is blind as a result of a brain tumor, is at least able to distinguish between night and day again since she has been receiving chemotherapy . There are also sad news: Nine-year-old Pamela has metastases and the outlook is not good. Another woman starts to cry: Her husband has left her and their three children, one of whom lost an eye because of an eye tumor; she herself works for a low wage on a plantation in the highland area and is completely overwhelmed by it all: "Why, oh why are men like that?" Another single mother from the coastal region of Esmeralda explains that she is trying to support her four children by earning 50 US$ collecting mussels, and now one of the girls has a brain tumor paralyzing nearly all muscle functions. What to do?

The women working in the office now establish records of the new cases, give out medications, fill out order forms for more medications and treatments, hand a cuddly toy to one child that is particularly upset, and try to calm the distraught parents and help them make sense of things. The foundation’s financial effort to cover medications, examinations or sometimes even just the bus fare or accommodation in Quito is not only a big relief for the parents, but simply vital for the survival of their sick children.

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