In a heartfelt repayment, Roger Daltrey announced the launch of the UCLA Daltrey/Townshend Teen & Young Adult Cancer Program, which will serve teens and young adult cancer patients at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.
The vision of the program is to ensure that every young person receives the best possible care and professional support to help them meet the physical and emotional challenges of a cancer diagnosis. The belief is that teenagers and young adults shouldn't stop enjoying their youth just because they have cancer.
"At a time when your body is changing, your social life is everything and you're still trying to figure out who you are, getting cancer can seem like an impossible blow to take," Daltrey said. "We believe that teenagers have a much better chance in their fight against cancer if they are treated by experts specializing in their care in a compassionate environment tailored to their needs."
"I hope that our fans will really get behind Who Cares and do their bit to make a difference to young people living with cancer," Daltrey added. "We are grateful to UCLA for helping bring the treatment successes we've made with young people in the U.K. to teens in America."
Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin, who has been closely involved with the program in the U.K., also lend his support to the program at UCLA.
"We hope to bring the success of the Teenage Cancer Trust program in the U.K. to this inaugural program at UCLA," Plant said. "The caring and support the program provides have made a huge difference in the lives of many teens and young adults who are battling cancer."
The new program — the first of its kind in the United States — will build on the previous successful efforts of the Teenage Cancer Trust, which has helped fund 19 special teen cancer units in the United Kingdom.
One of the goals of the program is to create rooms built around a common lounge area where young cancer patients can hang out with one another.
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