Updated June 16th, 2020

Make-A-Wish Foundation Forced To Put 5,000 Wishes On Hold Due To COVID-19 — Children Battling Cancer Waiting For Their Dreams To Come True

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Some children battling cancer are facing major heartbreak due to COVID-19, as nonprofit organization Make-A-Wish Foundation has been forced to pause granting wishes in order to keep children and their families safe.

The organization has been granting wishes to pediatric cancer patients since 1980, and since has granted hundreds of thousands of wishes to children whether it’s a trip to Disneyland or meeting their favorite celebrity face-to-face. However, since most wishes concern air travel, the foundation has been forced to pause granting a majority of wishes amid the outbreak.

Shelby Donald, a spokesperson for Make-A-Wish America, told SurvivorNet that 77% of 16,000 wishes granted annually include travel. In order to keep families and children safe, 5,000 wishes have been postponed until August 31st of this year. Donald says that some wishes will be granted virtually. However, the organization says they will still try to help children despite disruptions caused by the outbreak.

“Make-A-Wish has implemented new wish granting policies designed to continue granting wishes during these challenging times because the hope that comes with a wish is more important now than ever,” Make-A-Wish says in a statement. “Make-A-Wish has also established a Reemergence Task Force to drive organizational strategy and planning to ensure we are prepared to resume wish fulfillment at an expedited rate once postponements end.”

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Pediatric Cancer Patients And COVID-19

While researchers have found that older adults are at most risk of contracting COVID-19, experts have told SurvivorNet that pediatric cancer patients are also susceptible to the virus.

“Children with cancer in general have compromised immune systems because they have a cancer,” says Dr. Puvri Parikh, a pediatric ontologist at NYU Langone Health. “Then on top of that, they might be on treatments that further compromise their immune systems, such as chemotherapy or radiation or any type of transplant. So for that reason, their immune system is not working as well as it would if they were healthy, and they’re at higher risk not only for catching COVID-19, but having severe outcomes from it.”

Due to the infectious virus, hospitals have taken extra precautions to keep patients, staff, and family members safe. Many facilities across the country have suspended family visitations for patients in the hospital. Oftentimes, only one family member will be allowed to visit.

Dr. Puvri Parikh says pediatric cancer patients are more at risk of contracting COVID-19

“Being a parent, I know that can be difficult,” Dr. Parikh says. “So what we’re recommending is to work with your child’s oncologist to see what level of visitation is safe. Again, likely, it will be very limited, so either just one parent or less frequent…It is a little bit scary for the child, and probably lonely, too, because they count on their parents and family for support during difficult times. The best way to explain to the child– and children are very smart and understanding people– is basically to say, this is to keep you safe and to actually keep your mom and dad and your grandparents safe, too.”

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