ALABASTER – The Alabaster City Council designated September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month at a meeting on Monday, Sept. 16.

Thompson High School junior and 2019 Miss Heart of Dixie’s Outstanding Teen Maddie Machovec thanked the council and Mayor Marty Handlon for their help in bringing attention to childhood cancers, a topic that she has taken on as her platform.

Machovec said she is sometimes asked if she thinks cancer is curable, and her response is always, “absolutely.”

“It is absolutely curable,” she said. “The more awareness there is, the more funds we can raise to aide research efforts to find the cures we need.”

Every year thousands of children across America are diagnosed with cancer. This life-threatening illness remains the leading cause of death by disease for children under 15 years old. Every three minutes, a family hears the devastating words, “your child has cancer.”

Many childhood cancers have much higher survival rates when diagnosed in the early stages of the disease. Unfortunately, childhood cancers are sometimes overlooked, or misdiagnosed, because early symptoms are attributed to common injuries or illnesses. It is recommended children have regular checkups, and parents pay close attention to the development of unusual signs or chronic symptoms.

The objective of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month is to put a spotlight on the types of cancer largely affecting children, survivorship, and most importantly, to help raise funds for additional research and family support.

Through the dedication and collaboration of advocates, researchers and health care professionals, the message raises awareness, drives progress in an effort to hopefully reveals cures or improved outcomes for patients.