Little Survivor Asks for More Birthdays

In the fall of 2009, Delaney Rogers celebrated her 5th birthday with a Scooby-Doo party. Pretty ordinary. But not if you consider how she reached the first milestones of her short life.

Delaney learned how to sit, crawl, walk and talk in a hospital room her mother Amy sterilized daily. She was just six months old when diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia, too sick to even lift her head.

Today, the little survivor from Machesney Park, Illinois, is helping the American Cancer Society raise funds to fuel lifesaving cancer research, free patient services and much more. (See Delaney in our new TV awareness campaign.)

Diapers and chemo
"You wouldn't recognize Delaney today as the bald baby with no eyelashes and no eyebrows, fighting through 7 months of chemotherapy," says Amy Rogers.  "Every day I wiped down the hospital room, spread a blanket and worked with her like I would have if we were at home."

Amy's loving determination helped both mother and daughter get through the tough times. Doctors declared Delaney's cancer in remission just after her 1st birthday, and she's been healthy ever since.

Your gift funds lifesaving research
Research funded by the American Cancer Society has helped improve the odds for children with cancer. Deaths from childhood cancers have declined by nearly 50% since 1975 – and survivors like Delaney are living proof of our progress.

Amy Rogers understands the value of research. She and Delaney have joined other Illinois cancer survivors and caregivers to ask for the gift anyone with cancer wants most: more birthdays. "We're so glad we could be part of this effort," says Amy. "We're thankful for Delaney's life and want to give all we can to the cancer fight."

You can join Delaney and 11 million other cancer survivors today in raising hope for a world with more birthdays. Please make your tax-deductible gift now at MyGiftOfHope.org.