Cancer Treatment for Children

Cancer Treatment for Children

Although you’re never prepared to receive a diagnosis of cancer for your child, when you face that situation, you know you want to work with pediatric oncology experts who can compassionately guide your journey and help you and your child achieve the best possible outcomes.

Specialized Pediatric Cancer Care Close to Home

When you choose Jimmy Everest Center in Oklahoma City, you gain access to board-certified pediatric hematologist-oncologists with special training in the diagnosis and treatment of cancers in children and adolescents at a comprehensive site for referrals of children throughout Oklahoma and across the region.

Take advantage of welcoming, compassionate healthcare professionals and family-friendly facilities, including the dedicated Hematology/Oncology Unit at Oklahoma Children’s Hospital with exam rooms, procedure and recovery rooms, satellite outpatient laboratory with phlebotomy area, a satellite hospital chemotherapy pharmacy and infusion area, as well as educational spaces.

You and your child or teen will work with a multidisciplinary team of experts from across the OU Health academic health system to develop an accurate diagnosis for your child’s condition and create an individualized treatment plan to meet their specific needs.

Expert Diagnosis for Cancer Conditions in Children & Teens

At the Jimmy Everest Center, you can take advantage of the highly trained pediatric cancer specialists with the knowledge, skill and advanced technologies to diagnose and treat childhood cancers and related issues such as:

Pediatric Cancer Services & Treatments

Beyond conventional pediatric cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy or surgery, your child may qualify for advanced options at OU Health such as transplant and cellular therapy, cooperative clinical trials and other investigational treatments not yet widely available.

Specialized pediatric cancer options at Jimmy Everest Center include:

  • Neurocutaneous Syndrome Comprehensive Program
  • Neuro-Oncology Multidisciplinary Comprehensive Program
  • Taking on Life after Cancer (TLC) Survivorship Comprehensive Program

Most importantly, the pediatric hematologist-oncologists on your Oklahoma Children’s Hospital care team consider the effects of chemotherapy, radiation and other therapies on children’s growing bodies and make every effort to minimize any negative effects these treatments may have during your child’s important developmental years.

Research-Based Treatments Available Only at OU Health

At Oklahoma Children’s Hospital, you benefit from comprehensive pediatric cancer care that offers treatment options designed to improve outcomes – many available nowhere else in Oklahoma – including access to the state’s only pediatric bone marrow and stem cell transplantation team.

Children’s Oncology Group (COG) Leadership

Your child also may benefit from extensive investigational research and cooperative clinical trials through Children’s Oncology Group (COG), the world’s largest childhood cancer research organization. As one of more than 200 COG-affiliated institutions supported in part by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Oklahoma Children’s Hospital regularly ranks near the top for enrollment in clinical trials to explore innovative treatment options for pediatric cancers.

Hematology/Oncology Unit at Oklahoma Children’s Hospital

When your child needs hospital-based attention, you’ll find specialized pediatric oncology care through the Hematology/Oncology Unit in Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health. The expert, fellowship-trained pediatric hematologist-oncologists use equipment designed just for children. Unless absolutely necessary for the specific situation, treatments and procedures happen in areas away from your child’s private room to help them feel as safe as possible when in their own room.

Child Life Specialists for Developmentally Appropriate Support

Your child also benefits from working with OU Health Child Life specialists who understand how to explain medical treatments in language appropriate for your child’s age and development, often while demonstrating procedures with interactive dolls. In addition, Child Life specialists provide programs for your hospitalized child that engage them with developmentally appropriate toys, crafts and other activities during their hospital stay.

Your Involvement as a Parent

As a parent, you’re included in all aspects of your child’s care and encouraged to provide any portion or type of care you feel you can manage. And when you’re ready to bring your child home, you’ll receive instruction about how to use special equipment or medication your child may need. Your care team also plans for your child’s follow-up appointments with designated doctors and specialists. For in-person visits to JEC during the coronavirus pandemic, check the latest COVID-19 requirements.

What to Know About Your Child’s Hospital Stay

While in the hospital’s Hematology/Oncology Unit, you and your child will appreciate staying in a completely private room, as well as other amenities and services, including:

  • Visitors – Parents are always welcome; some restrictions may apply. Check with your nursing team.
  • Overnight stay – Parents can always stay all night
  • Schedules or routines – Formal rounds (meetings) with your child’s care team each morning to answer questions and ensure everyone remains up to date on the plan of care; nursing assessments every four hours or more often as needed
  • Meal delivery – On request as selected by family and as permitted by medical orders; snacks always available if allowed by physician orders

Your Children’s Cancer Treatment Team

As your child or teen receives cancer care and treatment from your extensively experienced Oklahoma Children’s Hospital team at the Jimmy Everest Center, you may work with many children’s oncology and other pediatric healthcare professionals, including board-certified and fellowship-trained pediatric hematologist-oncologists, pediatric surgeons, neurosurgeons, orthopedists, urologists, otolaryngologists (ear, nose, throat doctors), radiation oncologists, radiologists, anesthesiologists and pathologists.

Your comprehensive care team also may include certified pediatric oncology nurses, social workers, child life specialists, parent liaisons, spiritual care (chaplains), nurse practitioners, physician assistants and volunteers from the Oklahoma Children’s Cancer Association. Everyone focuses on helping achieve the best possible outcomes for your child’s particular situation while keeping your family close.

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