posted on Feb. 2: Pediatrics professor’s guidebook aids families, children with cancer

Pediatrics professor Ronald Barr and his colleagues in the hematology-
oncology service at the Children's Hospital at Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation(HHSC) have written a book that will touch the lives of children with cancer and their families.

Childhood Cancer: Information for the Patient and Family is a
150-page guidebook written by Barr and his colleagues in an effort to provide assistance to families of children with cancer.

“The purpose of this book is to provide a source of information and
guidance,” says Barr, who is chief of the hematology-oncology service
at the Children's Hospital.

“It's intended to help children and their families understand their new experiences and so reduce the fear that accompanies uncertainty.”

About 50,000 copies of the book will be distributed free of charge to families of children in Canada and the United States who are diagnosed with cancer during the next five years thanks to a $420,000 (Cdn) grant from Ronald McDonald House Charities (U.S.).
The book is published by B C Decker Inc., a Hamilton-based publishing house that specializes in health care.

The guidebook is the first of two books that are being
published as part of this project. The second, which will be released in March, is called You and Your Cancer: A Child's Guide. It has been written for children in the 5- to 7-year-old age group and it will also be distributed free.

Ronald McDonald House Charities is an international organization
dedicated to supporting children who are suffering from cancer and their families. Funding for this book was also provided by Help A Child Smile and Cure & Care for Children's Cancer & Leukemia.

Childhood Cancer retails for $28.95 (Cdn) and is
available from B C Decker in Lewiston, N.Y. or Hamilton. The proceeds
from these sales will support research in pediatric oncology at the
Children's Hospital and McMaster University.