POGO is creating the chair to recruit a top-level, visionary leader who will work with hospitals, researchers, government, parents and survivors.
Pediatric cancer is the second leading cause of death in Ontario children, after accidents.
Vanessa, then 13, was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease. Now 28, married and a new mother, Vanessa is a living reminder that childhood cancer can be beaten. Vanessa's survival and the quality of life that she enjoys are directly attributable to the unending work that is being done to prevent, diagnose and treat childhood cancer and, as importantly, to deal with the long-term emotional and physical effects that this disease and its treatment have on an entire family. POGO already has raised a portion of the money needed to help establish the Chair in Childhood Cancer thanks to a generous donation from the Melman family. In addition to his donation, Melman volunteers for POGO, serving on the fundraising committee with his wife Valerie and their daughters Vanessa and Justine.