Our mission is to raise awareness of DIPG (Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Gliomas) and raise funds that will go directly towards childhood brain cancer research. There is nothing more devastating than to hear your child has cancer, but also that it is untreatable and terminal. Madox’s Warriors seeks to raise awareness about DIPG and pediatric brain cancer, but to also provide funding for research to one day offer effective treatment to children with DIPG.
DIPG are highly aggressive and difficult to treat brain tumors found at the base of the brain. They are glial tumors, meaning they arise from the brain’s glial tissue—tissue made up of cells that help support and protect the brain’s neurons. These tumors are found in an area of the brainstem (the lowest, stem-like part of the brain) called the pons, which controls many of the body’s most vital functions such as breathing, blood pressure, and heart rate. Approximately 300 children are diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas (DIPG) each year, usually between the ages of 5 and 9. (childrenshospital.org). Life expectancy remains at 9-12 months, with only a few children living past 2 years.
There is no cure for this tumour! Not only is there no cure, but treatment is very limited. There is not enough research and funding for children with cancer. Federally, only 4% is given to childhood cancer research, with 1% of that 4% going to brain cancers. This leaves the children and their families with a cancer diagnosis and no chance to win their fight. We can make a change by raising funds and donating directly to promising research geared towards DIPG and childhood brain cancer.
Marco and Suzanne Suzio founded Madox’s Warriors in honour of their 9 year old son Madox, who heroically battled DIPG for 5 months before passing away August 8, 2014. Although Suzanne worked as a pediatric nurse, she too had never heard of DIPG. DIPG is still considered rare, even though 30 children a year are diagnosed in Canada, 300 per year in the United States. The Suzio’s are a healthy, active family who were devastated by the news their son was ill. Only days before his diagnosis, he was jumping, running, playing and enjoying being a happy child. It happened so suddenly to the family, with the only warning sign being a change in his eyesight. Sadly, DIPG is not tested enough to understand why these tumours grow. Thankfully there are brave families donating their deceased child’s tumours/brains for research in order to help other children and families.
We fundraise and fight for two primary goals:
- We raise money and donate all proceeds to current childhood brain cancer research, specifically DIPG.
- We support The Dream Factory – a Manitoba based charitable organization dedicated to fulfilling dreams for kids battling life-threatening illnesses.