Medical school hosts camps for children with cancer, sickle-cell disease

GREENVILLE, N.C. —   This week, the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University is making it possible for children with cancer, hemophilia and sickle-cell disease to take part in summer camp.

Camp Rainbow, for children with cancer, hemophilia and chronic blood disorders, and Camp Hope, for children with sickle-cell disease, are being held Sunday, June 10, through Saturday, June 16, at the Don Lee Center on the Neuse River near Arapahoe. The camps are being held simultaneously due to funding shortages.

Media day at the camps will be Thursday, June 14, from 9 a.m.-noon. To schedule an interview Thursday, contact Jacquelyn P. Sauls at (252) 551-7404 or call the Don Lee Center at (800) 535-5475 or (252) 249-1106 and ask for the Camp Rainbow and Hope staff. Directions the Don Lee Center are online at www.donleecenter.org.

The pediatric hematology/oncology staff at the medical school has developed these camps to provide children with a chance to learn more about themselves and their illness. Campers participate in activities such as sailing, swimming, canoeing and crafts, and make new friends who share common experiences with cancer, hemophilia and sickle-cell disease in a medically monitored environment designed to meet their medical and psychosocial needs.

Approximately 100 total campers are expected from the following counties: Beaufort, Carteret, Chowan, Craven, Edgecombe, Greene, Halifax, Hyde, Jones, Lenoir, Martin, Nash, Northampton, Onslow, Pitt, Wake, Washington, Wayne and Wilson.

Camps Rainbow and Hope were made possible this year by the Children’s Miracle Network, the ECU Medical Foundation and donations from individuals.