ABOUT DIPG

Diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma or DIPG is the most common form of pediatric brain cancer and the most deadly. Approximately 300 children per year are diagnosed with DIPG – its cause is unknown.. DIPG is a highly aggressive tumor in the brain stem. Because of the criticality of the brainstem to our basic functions, common interventions used in other cancers such as resection are not an option. Symptoms vary in each child but can include partial or full facial paralysis, eye(s) turned inward, loss of balance, loss of ability to walk, loss of fine motor coordination, loss of ability to move, loss of speech, loss of ability to eat, excruciating headaches, and eventually loss of ability regulate breathing and heartbeat. DIPG is almost always fatal (see facts- link to above) and the average life expectancy for a child at diagnosis is 9-11 months, nearly the same amount of time it took them to develop to enter this world.

Since Neal Armstrong’s daughter passed from this terrible disease in 1962 to today – 60 years later – the prognosis for children with DIPG has barely improved. Radiation therapy is the only standard of care – and while it helps most children, it makes some children incredibly sick and makes others worse. There is reason for hope. And while there is no cure for DIPG, many brilliant minds across the globe – including many that helped our Braden – are working tirelessly for a cure. You can help them find a cure.