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Innovations in Epilepsy

Who we are and who we can become are rooted in the brain. In childhood, the brain is at peak potential for learning and development, yet it is also in its most vulnerable stage.

One third of children living with epilepsy remain unresponsive to current anti-seizure therapies, causing tremendous distress, disruption and uncertainty for them and their families in their day-to-day lives.

Thankfully, work is now underway that will advance the hospital’s epilepsy program to offer new and better options for thousands of children. The vision for the expanded Alberta Children’s Hospital Epilepsy Program focuses on prevention, research and innovative treatment, with the goal of children and families in our community experiencing faster diagnosis, fewer seizure days, reduced anxiety, coordinated access to testing and care, and personalized treatment paths.

The team is focused on three key priorities:

• Curing children of seizures using high-precision surgical intervention where possible
• Caring for children with individualized and novel therapies
• Prevent children at risk of recurring seizures from developing epilepsy

Since last winter, Kate, 4, has suffered thousands of seizures. While her journey is far from over, thanks to specialists at the Alberta Children’s Hospital, her seizures have reduced dramatically. Her family looks forward to the day she can live completely seizure-free.

New Cures for Childhood Cancer

Brain tumours, relapsed leukemias and cancers that start in the bone or soft tissue account for 60-70% of all childhood cancers. They are also the highest cause of death for kids facing a cancer battle.

Experts from the Alberta Children’s Hospital and the University of Calgary are joining forces to tackle these deadly cancers and find desperately needed new cures for these children. Their focus is on developing a new form of cancer treatment that harnesses a child’s own immune system to tackle their particular cancer. Since this treatment uses the body’s own resources, the toxic effects of chemotherapy are reduced, with children experiencing fewer long-term effects.

Personalized, engineered immunotherapy is already showing significant promise and the first form of this treatment, known as CAR-T, is now being offered at the Alberta Children’s Hospital. The vision of the team is to create an environment of discovery, innovation and translation that will accelerate the development of more novel cellular immunotherapies and test them in clinical trials.

With your support, this unique research initiative will provide answers and offer new hope to children and families in Alberta, across Canada and around the world.

Luke, 4, has been fighting cancer for more than half his life. Diagnosed with very high-risk leukemia at just two years old, he won’t finish treatment until he’s almost six. Thanks to you, scientists at the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute are conducting ground-breaking research to find more personalized and effective treatments for hard-to-treat cancers like Luke’s.

Kid-Focused Care

Hospitalization is stressful for everyone—even more so when it involves a child. To help reduce the anxiety and potential trauma that can be associated with serious illness and injury, the Alberta Children’s Hospital is able to provide specially-designed programming and support for patients and their families, thanks to community support.

A favourite program among kids at the hospital is Therapeutic Play, which includes art therapy, music therapy and horticultural therapy. Led by the hospital’s Child Life team, these programs help kids cope with their experiences and express themselves in ways words cannot. These interactive and hands-on activities provide social stimulation, distraction from difficult treatments or procedures, entertainment during lengthy hospital stays, as well as engaging opportunities for physical, mental, emotional and spiritual healing.

Generous community donations also support the Family and Community Resource Centre (FCRC) and Emily’s Backyard. The FCRC connects parents to credible health and community resources, other families with a similar experience and recreational toys and technology to help manage long hospital stays. Provided at no cost to families, Emily’s Backyard is a supervised, child-minding play area that engages patients and siblings in a safe and caring environment and enables parents to devote their full attention to appointments with their child’s medical team.

When Kai, 12, was diagnosed with a form of juvenile arthritis, he had to face his fear of needles in order to receive the medication needed to treat his debilitating joint pain. Thanks to the Child LIfe team working with him on strategies to cope with his pain and needle anxiety, he can now manage his condition and is back to doing things he loves like snowboarding.

Emerging Adult Mental Health

Serious challenges faced by young people, heightened by the fallout of Covid-19, have prompted the development of an integrated clinical and research mental health initiative focused on helping 16 to 24 year olds.

Jointly led by Alberta Health Services and the University of Calgary, this new venture is bringing together clinicians and researchers with expertise in child, adolescent and adult psychiatry, psychology, social work and adolescent medicine to address significant global gaps in knowledge and services. With input from young people and their families, this initiative will research, re-examine and redesign services and treatments to meet the needs of a population at a pivotal juncture in their psychological, neurobiological and social-emotional development.

With your help, the existing health care model will be transformed to better support young people at risk of falling between the cracks of the pediatric and adult mental health care systems. Ultimately, this will include the creation of a new purpose-driven centre—a blend of virtual and physical space—that will provide nation-leading research-intensive care tailored for emerging adults and their families.

Like many who face mental health challenges, Steph, 22, has learned there is no quick fix. With help she received from her medical team and group therapy at the Alberta Children’s Hospital, Steph can now recognize when she’s struggling and use the tools she acquired to find balance again. She is encouraged by this initiative that will help more young people facing mental health struggles.

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Thank you for considering a gift to the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation. Your donation can make this holiday season brighter for children and families at the Alberta Children’s Hospital.