Cancer Care (Oncology)

Mail:

1600 Rockland Road
Wilmington, DE 19803
» Get Map and Directions

Phone:

(302) 651-4000

Doctors:

At the Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children (AIDHC) we offer a family-friendly program emphasizing supportive care and comfort, as well as top-of-the-line treatment for all types of childhood cancers.

Our cancer care team helps families like yours throughout the course of their child’s care, from diagnosis to survivorship, providing the resources and education they need to leave the hospital well-prepared for their child’s ongoing treatment.

Our home away from home

Multicolor floors and playful animal wallpaper color the corridors of our inpatient units. Each unit houses a play area/lounge with games, color TV, toys, books, tables, couches, highchairs, and a computer. Kids’ rooms are equipped with a bathroom, a bulletin board to display cards or artwork, and a color TV. At least one parent is usually welcome to stay with their child overnight. So, you won’t have to worry about what your child is going through – you can be right there.

And our new Family Resource Center and Ronald McDonald Family Room, decorated in soothing earth tones with twinkling lights to mimic a starlit sky, allows our families to enjoy some of the comforts of home, just a few short steps away from their child’s bedside. The many amenities include:

• laundry facility
• showers
• kitchenette
• library with books, periodicals, and DVDs
• business center with a copier, fax machine, computers, and printers
• three sleep rooms, equipped with a full-size bed and comfortable furniture, giving parents with the most critically ill children a peaceful respite from hospital life

The Family Resource Center and Ronald McDonald Family Room was a joint project between the hospital and the Ronald McDonald House of Delaware, located right across from the hospital’s campus.

Families of chronically or seriously ill children who live more than 25 miles away from the hospital can find another comfortable place to rest and recuperate at the Ronald McDonald House, if necessary. The House includes private guest rooms (each with a bathroom, phone, and TV), computers with high-speed internet, media room, fitness center, playrooms, a teen room, kitchen, library, and outdoor playgrounds. At night, volunteers prepare a hot meal for all of the families. And those staying over the weekend get breakfast. Families are asked to donate $15 for each night, however (like Nemours) the Ronald McDonald House of Delaware doesn’t turn away any family that can’t pay.

Our value in your involvement

We may know your child’s cancer and how to treat it but only you know your child best. That means we want you to be an active participant in the decision-making process. And that’s why we take the time to: explain the diagnosis and treatment (including side effects) in understandable terms, present information about all of the options, and invite your input for creating the right treatment plan for your child.

To help you understand what’s going on throughout the journey, Nemours’ world-renowned, award-winning website KidsHealth.org partnered with the GetWellNetwork, Inc. (a leading provider of interactive patient care information) to offer a series of in-hospital videos. The shows (which cater to parents, kids, and teens) explain what to expect, from diagnosis to treatment to survivorship.

To help you stay on top of the details of your child’s care, we also offer MyNemours – a secure internet portal that allows you to view select areas of your electronic medical record currently maintained by Nemours. You can access these records any time, day or night, from anywhere. You can schedule appointments, read customized, informative content from KidsHealth.org, and get your child’s medications refilled online. And it’s secure, confidential – and free.

Our comprehensive, caring care team

Our cancer care team includes a large number of caring and skilled specialists who are experienced in the treatment of childhood cancer.

Pediatric nurses with specialty training in oncology also staff the inpatient and outpatient units that care for children with cancer. And someone called a “cancer care coordinator” does just that – coordinates and guides you and your child through the cancer experience, from diagnosis through treatment, long-term survival, late effects, and hospice (at home) care and support.

And because cancer can affect many aspects of children’s health, the team works closely with other subspecialists who play important roles in treating children with cancer.

Our close collaboration

A group of specialists involved in cancer treatment (called a “tumor board”) meets every week to discuss and review important treatment decisions. These specialists include pediatric experts from oncology, surgery, orthopedic surgery with specialized expertise in bone tumor surgery, neurosurgery, otolaryngology, plastic surgery, radiology, pathology, radiation oncology and other pediatric specialists depending on what the case demands.   And members of a special brain tumor clinic collaborate on treatment decisions for children with brain tumors.

Our very own school

If you have a school-aged child getting a stem cell transplant, we even offer an on-site school to make sure your child doesn’t fall behind. Operated by the local Brandywine Valley School District, our in-hospital school is staffed by professional teachers, teachers’ aides, and volunteers.

The school follows the local school calendar from September to June. Classes are held daily from 9 a.m-12 p.m. and 1 p.m.-3 p.m. Your child’s care team will determine when it’s OK for your child to attend school in the schoolroom at the hospital. Until then, the teachers will provide tutoring right in your child’s room.

When preparing for a stem cell transplant, your child’s regular school and the hospital’s teacher will work together to develop a personalized education plan for your child that can be used during both the hospital stay and when your child is considered an outpatient – just coming in for follow-up appointments. And if the care team gives the all-clear, children can continue to attend the hospital’s school even when they’re outpatients.

Our special place for outpatient care

Children receive outpatient care in our Pediatric Oncology Day Therapy Suite, where kids come in for testing and treatment and can go home on the same day. This area is a state-of-the-art outpatient area where a variety of services can be delivered to childhood cancer patients. The oncology team provides services including:

• assessment
• chemotherapy administration
• blood transfusion
• minor procedures
• patient and caregiver education
• nursing care

The Day Therapy Suite offers toys, games, and arts and crafts with child-sized furniture for play time, as well as large, comfortable areas for rest in a bright, open area overlooking the hospital’s grounds. The suite has an area designated especially for teens, where they can receive chemotherapy, blood products or other treatments, all while playing with computers and video games.

Our world-class treatment

We actively participate in the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), an international organization that conducts research to identify cancer causes and pioneer state-of-the-art treatments and cures for childhood cancer. Our participation in COG allows us to offer the best care available.

Our complementary therapies

We support and encourage some of the complementary therapies that may speed recovery or help relieve pain or symptoms of treatment. We have a special room where some of our providers, trained in a widely practiced therapy called “Healing Touch,” can use touch techniques to restore harmony and balance to help the body heal itself.   

Our blood and bone marrow transplantation program

We have a very versatile and comprehensive Blood and Bone Marrow Transplant (BBMT) program offering a number of therapies, including stem cell transplants, which our doctors can tailor to create the best treatment for each child. The program provides stem cell transplants to treat children diagnosed with many conditions such as:

• leukemia
• anemia
• brain tumors
• other solid organ tumors
• certain genetic diseases

Nemours’ program offers a potential cure for children with certain types of cancers and many life-threatening blood diseases.

Learn more about all of the services offered at AIDHC.