Having medical procedures can be tough for children, especially when many are repeated during a long course of medical care. Though necessary, they do not need to be painful. Maria Sohail, child life intern and Masters Candidate in Child Life and Pediatric Psychosocial Care, explores a range of pain management strategies that can support a child’s mind and body comfort.
Children with retinoblastoma face frequent, stressful procedures that shape trust, pain perception, and medical experience long after treatment. Calm, coordinated support can change everything. WE C Hope CEO, Abby White, and Child Life Specialist, Morgan Livingstone, introduce One Voice – an approach that unifies coaching, empowers parents, and helps teams deliver safer, kinder care – with practical tools families and clinicians can use today.
Routine blood tests and immunizations often cause pain and fear. Retinoblastoma screening, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up care involves countless needle procedures. It doesn’t have to hurt! Parents and professionals can bring comfort and calm to any needle procedure. Rb survivor and WE C Hope founder, Abby White; and Child Life Specialist, Morgan Livingstone, explore practical, evidence-based ways to reduce needle pain and support healthy coping for babies and children.
In September 2025, 140 survivors, patients, family members, friends and medical professionals gathered at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles for the 7th Southern California Rb Family Day, sharing laughter, tears, and powerful solidarity. WE C Hope USA President and Founding Board Member, Marissa D. Gonzalez, reflects on this transformative day filled with love and light, and the hope and healing nurtured in community.
Play is the language, university, and business of childhood. Medical play is a key part of child-focused health care, helping young patients learn, reduce fear, and take part in their care. Sophie Goldberg, child life intern and student of Child Life and Pediatric Psychosocial Care, explores what medical play is, and how you can use it to empower your child through their medical experiences.
A diagnosis of childhood cancer can leave parents feeling adrift and utterly alone. The friends who walk with them through their child’s medical care are often cherished lifelong, and from a central thread in their own healing. Megan Santos reflects on the many friendships formed before, during and after her daughter’s treatment for retinoblastoma.
Do you know the difference between lazy eye and squint, or an ocular oncologist and a paediatric oncologist? Do you know when extraocular Rb becomes metastatic, or why trilateral Rb is neither of these? In Part 1 of a mini-series, WE C Hope CEO Abby White explains these and other terms, and why using them correctly is important.
Children with cancer experience invasive procedures and stressful events throughout their medical care that can impact their ability to cope, inhibit their development and negatively affect their health and well-being throughout life. Child life supports effective healthcare and reduces trauma. Morgan Livingstone CCLS describes how WE C Hope is bringing hope through Child Life to children and their families in Africa.
Google, AI, and social media play an increasingly significant role in the lives of families affected by retinoblastoma, but without careful use, they can complicate a child’s medical care and even put life at risk. Dr. Jesse Berry shares her recommendations for being a safely informed, engaged parent advocate in the modern hyper-connected age.
On March 10, 2019, our beloved child life specialist Jayne Kamau died aboard Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 as she returned home from SIOPAfrica in Cairo. WE C Hope Child Life Director, Morgan Livingstone, reflects on more than a decade of mentoring, friendship and working together to advance child life in Kenya. Co-authored with WE C Hope CEO, Abby White.
