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Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism University of Southern California
Spotlight

Childhood Cancer Survivor Blogs for Awareness

Peter Betters' blog provides an outlet for cancer patients and survivors all over the world. ATVN's Christina Savan reports. 

Peter Betters said he was just 17 years old when he woke up in the middle of the night, feeling short of breath. His parents rushed him to the hospital, where doctors found a cancerous tumor. Just a senior in high school, Betters was diagnosed with stage three non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

Betters, now 25, has been in remission for six years. Although he is proud to share his experience today, Betters was once ashamed of his illness.

“I always wore hats or beanies and always tried to cover it up as much as I could, although I wasn’t really ‘covering up’ anything,” he said.

While he regrets that he didn’t make a greater effort to raise awareness in the past, Betters is now doing all he can to support cancer survivors.

He runs a website called Club Cancer Blog, which allows patients and survivors to share their stories in order to inspire and connect with one another.

Betters’ website encourages cancer patients and survivors to act as one in the community.

“You all have your individual stories, but we’re in this reality together," said Betters in a blog post. Anything you feel or think about and want to talk about, this is your place to talk about it."

According to the American Cancer Society, about 70,000 people will be diagnosed with lymphoma this year. September is childhood cancer awareness month, but the Club Cancer Blog encourages donation opportunities year-round. 

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