B.R.I.C.K. stands for Brain Research In Cancer Kids.  It's the name of our new fundraising group.  We have joined forces with our extended family to raise money specifically for Brain Tumor Research at the Peckham Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Rady Children's Health.

Many people don't realize that cancer in the brain affects the patient in different ways than cancers in other parts of the anatomy.  Think about it - it's your brain - the control center of everything that goes on in your body.  The cancer tumor itself messes with the brain, and then the treatment to get rid of the tumor also messes with the brain.  Though many kids with brain cancer survive the ordeal, they are often left with various "late effects" caused by the cancer itself and the treatments.

As an example, Les has some cognitive and physical limitations that cause him to respond and move more slowly than other kids his age.  If newer treatments were explored and found that could minimize the "late effects", then other kids who get brain cancer would have a better, more robust future.  

If you want to know more about Les Fountain’s specific brain cancer diagnosis and treatment story, you can peruse this blog.  Les had cancer in 2003 before there was CaringBridge and other websites like that, so we created our own website to keep everyone up to date – and have since moved the content over to this blog - lesfountain.com.  We hope you enjoy reliving Les’ story.

Thank you for your support of Rady Children's Health as they serve our cancer kids.