Focus on The Children’s Hospital Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders
from Practice Update, Summer 2005
Child Magazine recently ranked The Children’s Hospital’s Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders fifth in the nation among all pediatric cancer programs in the United States . The Center’s national ranking is a tribute to the expertise, dedicated staff, availability of research protocols and family-centered care provided to patients with childhood cancers and blood disorders.
The Children’s Hospital Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders is recognized nationally for the care provided to infants through young adults in a 13-state region. As the only center in the Rocky Mountain region dedicated solely to caring for children, adolescents and young adults diagnosed with cancer and blood disorders, The Children’s Hospital provides care for patients from birth to age 25, treating more than 600 patients each year.
The survey for Child Magazine, leading to the Center’s fifth in the nation ranking, included questions pertaining to survival rates for childhood cancers, staff qualifications, nurse-to-patient ratios, research funding and the number of clinical trials, the availability of playrooms, lending libraries, activities to help a child’s hospital experience seem less frightening, family services including support groups and sleeping accommodations for parents. The hospital also ranked in the top 10 amongst all children’s hospitals.
Our team of pediatric oncologists, hematologists and transplant specialists is nationally recognized for the diagnosis, treatment and cutting-edge research of childhood leukemias, solid tumors, hemophilia and other bleeding disorders, hemoglobinopathies, bone marrow failure states, immune deficiencies and certain genetic disorders.
The faculty of The Children’s Hospital has contributed to major advances in treatment efficacy, cost containment and service accessibility nationally. Our record of positive patient outcomes and reduced lengths of stay are largely attributable to our efficient diagnostic evaluations, prompt initiation of therapy, emphasis on outpatient care, fast-track discharge planning and specialized home care services.
The Children’s Hospital is part of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), an international organization that performs research and clinical trials. As a participating institution, Children’s receives a list of current clinical trials to determine which trials best suit our patients. Clinical trials have made tremendous strides in improving outcomes and our high patient survival rates correlate with our level of participation in clinical trials.
Children’s is one of two lead institutions of the Pediatric Oncology Experimental Therapeutics Investigators Consortium (POETIC). POETIC is composed of ten large academic medical centers in the U.S. and Canada , with a major emphasis on comprehensive cancer care and research. POETIC institutions treat one-third of all relapsed pediatric cancer patients in the United States .
Experts at The Children’s Hospital Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders in Denver , performed the region’s first cord blood transplant nine years ago, and lead the Rocky Mountain region in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The Children’s Hospital belongs to several registries of bone marrow and umbilical cord blood. These registries catalogue approximately six million potential unrelated donors worldwide for patients who lack suitably matched allogeneic family member donors. The hospital has its own marrow processing laboratory with a dedicated staff and a partnership with the University of Colorado Cord Blood Bank .
The Children’s Hospital hemophilia center is a nationally and internationally recognized center spearheading multi-institutional research projects in collaboration with pediatric hematologists around the world. The Hemophilia and Thrombosis Center has established a registry enabling these programs to receive national and local funding. In addition, the registry provides patients and practitioners access to ongoing research and clinical trials. There are only a few active pediatric registries for hemophilia and thrombosis in the United States and the Center serves the entire Rocky Mountain region.
The entire staff of The Children’s Hospital is available to provide the multidisciplinary support and treatment of patients of The Children’s Hospital Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders. Pediatric specialists throughout the hospital are available for consultation and treatment when necessary. Our family-centered care models provide for the physical and emotional needs of a young patient with cancer.
