Mattie Miracle Walk 2023 was a $131,249 success!

Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation Promotional Video

Thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive!

Dear Mattie Blog Readers,

It means a great deal to us that you take the time to write to us and to share your thoughts, feelings, and reflections on Mattie's battle and death. Your messages are very meaningful to us and help support us through very challenging times. To you we are forever grateful. As my readers know, I promised to write the blog for a year after Mattie's death, which would mean that I could technically stop writing on September 9, 2010. However, at the moment, I feel like our journey with grief still needs to be processed and fortunately I have a willing support network still committed to reading. Therefore, the blog continues on. If I should find the need to stop writing, I assure you I will give you advanced notice. In the mean time, thank you for reading, thank you for having the courage to share this journey with us, and most importantly thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive.


As Mattie would say, Ooga Booga (meaning, I LOVE YOU)! Vicki and Peter



The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation celebrates its 7th anniversary!

The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation was created in the honor of Mattie.

We are a 501(c)(3) Public Charity. We are dedicated to increasing childhood cancer awareness, education, advocacy, research and psychosocial support services to children, their families and medical personnel. Children and their families will be supported throughout the cancer treatment journey, to ensure access to quality psychosocial and mental health care, and to enable children to cope with cancer so they can lead happy and productive lives. Please visit the website at: www.mattiemiracle.com and take some time to explore the site.

We have only gotten this far because of people like yourself, who have supported us through thick and thin. So thank you for your continued support and caring, and remember:

.... Let's Make the Miracle Happen and Stomp Out Childhood Cancer!

A Remembrance Video of Mattie

January 24, 2020

Friday, January 24, 2020

Friday, January 24, 2020

Tonight's picture was taken in January of 2006. Mattie was three years old and was sitting on this cute wooden rocking duck. It turns out this duck was Peter's childhood toy. Mattie liked the notion that he was playing with something that once belonged to his dad. So he was smiling with pride! 


Quote of the day: Some people mistakenly believe that palliative care is only for patients who are incurably ill. The goal of palliative care is to provide relief from symptoms, and stress of a serious illness-whatever the diagnosis. ~ Raymond Young


About two weeks ago, a psychologist from Children's National Medical Center (Washington, DC) reached out to me. I happen to know her as she is one of the authors of the Psychosocial Standards of Care. I can't tell you how many wonderful professionals we have met over the years, as the Standards were being developed. This particular psychologist is competent, lovely and compassionate. It turns out she has been asked to write a palliative care chapter for a pediatric cancer textbook. She was hoping to include our story within her chapter and she asked me to write a 500 word submission that  highlights Mattie's diagnosis, his experiences, and whether we had access to palliative care. In addition, I was asked to make a statement about what I believe quality palliative care looks like, who is a palliative care provider and whether this care should be offered to both children and families. 

This was actually a difficult assignment for me because of the word count. It is hard to write about Mattie and our experiences and be succinct. Not my strong suit! That said, you maybe asking yourself, what is palliative care?  

Palliative care is focused on providing relief from the symptoms and stress of a serious illness. The goal is to improve quality of life for both the patient and the family. Palliative care is provided by a specially-trained team of doctors, nurses and other specialists who work together with a patient’s other doctors to provide an extra layer of support. It is appropriate at any age and at any stage in a serious illness, and it can be provided along with curative treatment.

In a nutshell, Mattie wasn't offered palliative care. I truly believe many hospitals and families still equate palliative care with end of life care. Therefore because the word is threatening, it isn't used at all. Which is unfortunate, because anyone with an illness should have access to palliative care right from the beginning of treatment. Palliative care helps manage pain, other symptoms and provides services to enhance quality of life. Certainly all patients want this type of support regardless of their medical prognosis. 

I found this slide to show you the difference between palliative and end of life care. Mattie's treatment was intense and produced many physical and psychosocial impairments. I think if we had a palliative care team assigned to us during the beginning of our journey, it is possible that Mattie's pain, social isolation, and fear would have been better managed. 

Here is what palliative care can do! When writing my 500 word submission, I spoke about the importance of including palliative care in comprehensive cancer care. I specifically discussed the role of psychosocial providers and how they are a crucial part of the care team. Since childhood cancer is a family disease, I elaborated on the fact that the treatment team is responsible for the well-being of both the child and the family.


Here are the benefits of palliative care according to the International Children's Palliative Care Network: 

1. A child's quality of life is vastly improved when the symptoms of their illness are well managed. This may require opioids. 

2. Children's palliative care is specifically tailored to the unique physical, psychosocial, cognitive, and spiritual development of each child. 

3. Age appropriate, sensitive but honest communication with children is a cornerstone of children's palliative care. 

4. Palliative care is best when provided by a coordinated and multi-professional team, working together for the best interests of the child and family. 

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