Childhood Cancer Ad In Swedish Subway Delivers Powerful Message To Promote Awareness
In the United States, cancer is considered the second leading cause of death in children after accidents. The American Cancer Society estimates that around 1,350 children under the age of 15 will die as the result of cancer by the end of 2014. A subway billboard advertisement created by the Swedish Childhood Cancer Foundation (Barncancerfonden) is using a powerful message to help raise awareness regarding cancer diagnoses among children.
The foundation got the idea for their ad from the Swedish shampoo brand Apolosophy. In Apolosophy’s ad, a young woman’s hair is blown around her face every time a train passes. A young girl featured in the foundation’s ad also has her hair blown around, but toward the end the girl’s hair blows away completely while a message flashes on the screen: “Every day a child is diagnosed with cancer.”
According to the Swedish Childhood Cancer Foundation, around 250,000 children and young people around the world are diagnosed with some form of childhood cancer each year. Following major treatment advances over the past few decades, childhood cancer survival rates after five years in developed countries have climbed to 80 percent compared to 60 percent in the mid-1970s. Unfortunately, childhood cancer in underdeveloped countries remains a major concern due to a lack of viable treatment options.