The Trustee for the Robert Connor Dawes Foundation
This organization has already been registered
Someone in your organization has already registered and setup an account. would you like to join their team?Profile owner : f*****e@r***********n.o*g
Mission Statement
Brain cancer is the most fatal of all childhood cancers. Current clinical treatments only help 50% of children, but leave 90% with lifelong physical and mental impairments. This is why brain tumours are so devastating, and why we’re on a mission to change the odds and make brain tumours go the way of the dinosaurs. We do this through: Research - Contributing funds to research that will improve brain tumour treatments, including earlier detection, surgery and post-surgery treatments. Care - Supporting families by organising and funding emotionally invaluable rehabilitation therapies and home assistance including music yoga therapy. Development - Inspiring the next generation of brain cancer practitioners and researchers through funding Phd Scholarships, Fellowships and youth engagement activities.
About This Cause
Inspired by a big heart and brain, the Robert Connor Dawes (RCD) Foundation was created in June 2013 by Liz Dawes in memory of her beloved son, “Connor”. Liz found that whilst brain cancer kills more young people than any other disease, the level of research, access to trials, support and prognosis was shockingly inadequate and still is, so she set upon a mission to change the odds for other children, to ensure no family has to go through her family’s experience. Only 5% of kids diagnosed will survive 5 years. It’s urgent that we do something about it. Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, Liz and RCD Foundation have been incredibly successful in the last 5 years, highlights include: Creating the largest fundraising event for paediatric brain cancer in the country - Connor’s Run - over 5,000 participants Bringing world-class testing to every Australian child diagnosed with brain cancer through the AIM BRAIN Project - Which is incredible because now every child can get an accurate diagnosis of exactly which of the 140 different tumours they have so that they can receive bespoke treatment to tackle their particular tumour, sadly, this is something that wasn’t around when Connor was diagnosed Successfully lobbing the Australian federal government to match AIM BRAIN funding ($1 million) and launch the $100 million Australian Brain Cancer Mission We are also supporting a new generation of researchers by funding scholarships and fellowships to the States (where Liz is from) at The Dana-Faber Cancer Institute and Harvard University, with the aim of increasing the number of trials available. The RCD Foundation also support families with kids battling brain cancer by funding music therapy and yoga sessions for the kids in their homes. So we're tackling finding a cure through research and at the front line too, helping families fight the battle. Our scientific advisory team of experts from around the world (including Amar Gajjar from St Jude Children Research Hospital, Memphis, USA; Richard Gilbertson from University of Cambridge, UK and Michael Taylor, Sick Kids, Toronto) identify high impact research projects to support that will immediately make a difference to kids diagnosed with paediatric brain cancer in Australia and all over the world.