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Pediatric Diabetes: Join our Twitter Chat with US News

CMN Hospitals treats more than 10 million kids annually. We’re celebrating World Diabetes Day and our amazing Miracle Kids who deal with pediatric diabetes every day.

Pediatric diabetes treatment facts:

  • Every day, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals treats 935 kids for diabetes
  • Every hour, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals treat 39 kids for diabetes

Kids like Lauren:

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Lauren is going places. From her savvy social media skills to the stylish custom pajamas she had a family friend make for her hospital stays, Lauren knows exactly what she wants and works hard to reach her goals.

She’s already proven herself as a warrior: she’s alive despite being given a 10 percent chance of survival after going into diabetic ketoacidosis. Lauren doesn’t like her situation, but the ambitious singer and dancer says, “I can live with it,” in true powerhouse form.

Since her diagnosis at age 7, it’s been far from an easy transition. From painful pump changes to education sessions with her schoolmates to teach them about pediatric diabetes, it’s a lot to handle. But not enough to dim Lauren’s spirit. Her mother has called her “Sunshine Girl” since infancy because Lauren would rise with the sun, murmuring songs from her crib. Like the rays she’s nicknamed after, she’ll continue bringing energy and hope to all around her.

See how funds help kids like Lauren at her children’s hospital.

Kids like Beckham:

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Beckham’s family first became acquainted with his children’s hospital when he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. When Beckham started having fevers and stomach pain three years later, they returned to the hospital for a second diagnosis: a rare blood disease that only affects one in a million kids.

Beckham received his first chemotherapy treatment within 48 hours of arriving at the hospital. He also needed a bone marrow transplant. He was living on borrowed time and medical professionals knew immediate action was imperative.

After family members and friends proved unsuitable matches, a miracle came in the form of a stranger registered to a national marrow donor program. The transplant was successful, and by the end of 2013, Beckham was in remission. Though still monitored for his pediatric diabetes, Beckham is happy to be playing football, golfing and riding his bike again.

See how funds help kids like Beckham at his children’s hospital.

Kids like Eleanor:

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Eleanor was only a year old when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. A year and a half later she was also diagnosed with acute lymphoid leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells.

When Eleanor’s cancer treatment ended, she was not excited to have her port removed – not because she was scared but because of her love of her children’s hospital. Eleanor shared how much she enjoyed the playroom, the child life specialists, the arts and crafts and the nurses, whom she would miss seeing regularly.

Today Eleanor is a strong compassionate little girl. Her cancer is in remission and her demeanor lights up any room. Pediatric diabetes is a part of her everyday life and while she understands that, so she can talk openly about her condition and doesn’t view herself as different.

See how funds help kids like Eleanor at her children’s hospital.

We’re joining US News for a Twitter chat on Wednesday, Nov. 16 to discuss pediatric diabetes. Join us using #DiabetesChat from 10-11 am MST: