At Grand River Hospital, we are fortunate to have an esteemed team of health care providers to care for the kids facing cancer in our community. While they work tirelessly with the resources they have, our local hospitals currently only have the ability to provide limited children’s cancer care services. This means that families are often required to travel to hospitals outside of the Region on a regular basis for care, which only adds to the many hardships and challenges they face. 

Nearly 4,000 children in Ontario are in active cancer treatment or follow-up care at any given point in time. With around 200 children and their families going through this right now in the communities that Grand River serves, a group of dedicated community members has come together to lead a new initiative with the goal of reducing the need to travel for treatment and, instead, make local, comprehensive children’s cancer care a reality.

This International Childhood Cancer Day, we are proud to celebrate the game-changing fundraising efforts of Scotland’s Yard. Inspired by an incredible girl named Scotland (Scottie) and the great courage she has demonstrated in the face of a difficult journey with cancer, Scotland’s Yard is a new healthcare initiative established with the goal of enhancing children’s cancer care here in Waterloo Region.

The Scotland’s Yard vision is to make comprehensive children’s cancer care available close to home. It will also support much needed renovations to our current care hub at Grand River Hospital and accelerate the arrival of high-tech diagnostic and treatment equipment that will elevate care for both child and adult cancer patients. Since the fall of 2021, Scotland’s Yard has already raised more than $115,000 for pediatric cancer care at Grand River, with even bigger plans to rally our community and raise money for kids’ cancer care in the months and years to come!

Join Scotland’s Yard in making a difference for children facing cancer in our community this International Childhood Cancer Day. Visit ScotlandsYard.ca to learn more about their vision and how you can support their goal.