The Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal (UHA) facilitated the airlift of five pediatric cancer patients to the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto last month, as part of the UHA’s ongoing programs to address the humanitarian catastrophe caused by the war in Ukraine.
The five children were flown to Canada in two separate airlifts that were sponsored by UHA and cost just under half a million dollars for the specialized airplanes with proper medical equipment and healthcare professionals on board. The Toronto-based charity Meagan’s Hug sponsored the accommodations for the children and their families, and the Canada Ukraine Foundation financially supported the transport of the children, their families and medical personnel from Europe to Canada. SickKids is covering the medical costs.
The children in Canada were forced to flee from Ukraine where they had been receiving treatment. Between February 24 and April 3, 2022, there were 85 attacks on health care in Ukraine impacting 71 facilities, according to the World Health Organization’s surveillance system, resulting in 73 deaths and 46 injuries. In Ukraine, 1,442 children under the age of 14 were diagnosed with cancer in 2020. In 2019, 446 children died from cancer in Ukraine, according to Global Health Burden data and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.
Background
The Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal (UHA) was established by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) and the Canada-Ukraine Foundation (CUF) in response to the war in Ukraine. Working with governmental and non-governmental partners in North America and Europe, UHA’s humanitarian efforts are focused on the delivery of food, shelter and medicines, and addressing the needs of the millions of refugees and victims of war. Click here to support the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal or visit us on the web: http://cufoundation.ca
Cheque can be sent to the CUF office (620 Spadina Ave, suite 200, Toronto, ON, M5S 2H4).For further information, email: [email protected]
Canada-Ukraine Foundation is a federally-registered charity (BN: 898992151RR0001)