The Coleman Foundation Comprehensive Brain and Spine Tumor Clinic offers specialized care for children of all ages. Because their brains and spines are still developing, children with these tumors require different care than adults. Also, children with brain tumors often have different types of tumors than adults and require extra monitoring because their brains are more sensitive.

Our comprehensive pediatric team includes pediatric oncologists, a pediatric neurosurgeon, a pediatric neurologist and a radiation oncologist with pediatric expertise, ensuring that your child receives age-appropriate pediatric care. These are specialists dedicated to children's health. They work hard to not only give your child the best care possible but to ease children’s fears, anxiety and sensitivity to pain, while empowering parents to participate actively in the healing process.

You can rest assured that your child will be in caring, capable hands. When you bring your child to Rush for cancer care, a nurse clinician helps you to coordinate all appointments, exams and consultations. The multidisciplinary team at Rush will work with your family to determine when different types of treatment may be appropriate, depending on your child's tumor and developmental stage. Sometimes radiation therapy can be delayed or the radiation dosage minimized to prevent complications. Your child will be closely monitored at every stage of treatment and follow-up.

Access to the Best Treatments Available

Pediatric cancer patients at Rush have access to the best and newest treatments available — the same ones available at every major pediatric hospital in the country. As a member of the Children's Oncology Group, Rush participates in the latest clinical research trials and cooperates with other national and international medical centers to improve care for children with brain and spine tumors. Rush offers all of these experimental protocols with oversight by the National Cancer Institute. For more information on clinical trials available at Rush, visit the Cancer Clinical Trials Web page.

Full Range of Pediatric Services

Pediatric patients at Rush have access to a full range of services tailored specifically to children, including the following:

• A 15-bed pediatric intensive care unit
• The Child Life Program, which focuses on the emotional and developmental well-being of hospitalized children at Rush and their families
• Support services, such as inpatient and outpatient pediatric rehabilitation that offers physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy 
• A developmental specialist and pediatric neurologist to work with your child's school and help with learning disabilities that may result from cancer or treatment

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