China News Service, Beijing, December 9th (Reporter Zhang Su) The reporter learned from the China Red Cross Foundation on the 9th that during the "13th Five-Year Plan" period, the National Lottery Charity Fund has received 1 billion yuan (RMB, the same below). With financial support, 25,422 children with leukemia and 9,805 children with congenital heart disease received assistance.
However, there are still more than 6000 children with leukemia and congenital heart disease waiting in line for help.
In order to help poor children with serious illnesses, the China Red Foundation established the "Little Angel Fund" to help poor children with leukemia and the "Angel Sunshine Fund" to help poor children with congenital heart disease in 2005 and 2006, respectively.
The two funds were included in the assistance of the National Lottery Public Welfare Fund in 2009 and 2011.
Recently, the China Red Foundation visited Jiangsu and Gansu provinces to carry out visits to poor and seriously ill children.
The visiting team visited 26 children suffering from leukemia, congenital heart disease, aplastic anemia and other serious diseases through both household and hospital admission, focusing on understanding the children's treatment and rehabilitation, psychological status, and family burden. The parents and the attending doctor communicate with the children to understand the children's rescue needs, in order to further improve and enhance the rescue work for children with serious illnesses, and reduce the risk of children's families becoming poverty due to illness and returning to poverty due to illness.
Among them is Xiaofeng (a pseudonym) who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2014.
His father recorded his child's experience during treatment in the form of an anti-cancer diary, including Xiaofeng's daily diet and treatment, and getting along with the child on a daily basis. He wrote more than 1.32 million words in 6 years.
Xiaofeng's father said that he hoped that the children could see the family's efforts to overcome the pain through these diaries after recovery.
Xiaofeng, who is in the second grade of elementary school, is currently in stable condition.
The medical experts who visited the house gave Xiaofeng a health follow-up.
The staff of the China Red Foundation presented Xiaofeng’s father with the "Guidelines for Rehabilitation of Childhood Leukemia" and also gave Xiaofeng a gift.
17-year-old Xiaoxi (pseudonym) was diagnosed with leukemia when she was in junior high school and relapsed again after being cured and discharged from hospital.
Xiao Xi’s mother cried and told the volunteers that her family had rented a room near the hospital for more than ten years in order to take care of the children. “I really don’t have any money and I don’t know what to do in the future”.
Xiaoxin (pseudonym), who is being treated at the Children's Hospital of Soochow University, is also a child with leukemia and is currently waiting in line for help.
Xiaoxin's mother said that since the child’s diagnosis, it has spent nearly 800,000 yuan, including more than 200,000 yuan donated by social love, but the child’s follow-up treatment costs still need about 70,000 yuan per year.
The relevant person in charge of the Chinese Red Foundation said that in the face of numerous rescue needs, the annual budget of 200 million yuan is still stretched.
Due to limited funds, the assistance of the poverty-stricken children rescue project is limited to children aged 0-14.
To this end, the China Red Foundation has proposed the "14th Five-Year Plan" lottery public welfare fund project plan to the Ministry of Finance. On the basis of increasing the financial special budget, it is recommended that children aged 15-18 be included in the scope of assistance, and at the same time appropriately increase the types of assistance. Make more children get help opportunities.
It is worth mentioning that during the visit, volunteers from the visiting team and Ullens Center for Contemporary Art also came to the Department of Hematology, Huai’an First People’s Hospital, and brought a lively session to the children with serious illnesses who were treated there. Interesting "mood glasses" lesson.
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