• On the occasion of International Childhood Cancer Day, the Albert Bosch Foundation launches a social call in an unexpected setting
• The action marks the beginning of a fundraising campaign to boost childhood cancer research at Vall d’Hebron
• Football becomes a loudspeaker for an urgent need: developing treatments specifically designed for children and adolescents
Football press conferences usually follow a familiar script: opponent analysis, team status, tactical decisions. But during Girona Football Club’s press conference ahead of Matchday 24 of LaLiga, which will see them face FC Barcelona, that script was broken for a few seconds that no one in the room will forget.
In the middle of a strictly sporting context, an unexpected question to Girona coach Míchel Sánchez completely changed the tone of the press conference: “What do you think is the signing we are missing?”
The question did not refer to results or the transfer market. It was the core of a solidarity action promoted by the Albert Bosch Foundation, created by Noel Alimentaria, on the occasion of International Childhood Cancer Day. A starting point for a clear and urgent call: to accelerate childhood cancer research and provide it with specific resources that today do not exist with the same intensity or priority as in adult cancer.
The action is part of the campaign “The signing we are missing”, promoted by the Albert Bosch Foundation in support of Vall d’Hebron, and backed by Girona Football Club and the Girona FC Foundation. An initiative that uses the language and reach of sport to place at the center of the conversation a scientific and social need that is still not very visible.
Pediatric oncology patients and healthcare professionals from Vall d’Hebron University Hospital have actively participated in the initiative, both in creating the graphic elements that shape the project and by sharing their image and testimony in the different creative pieces that will be released.
Thus, “The signing we are missing” is a metaphor. It represents the creation of a next-generation research unit, made up of a specialized team of doctors, bioinformaticians and researchers, as well as advanced robotic technology, with the aim of accelerating the discovery and development of new drugs specifically for childhood cancer.
Currently, many pediatric oncology treatments are based on drugs originally developed for adults. This reality limits therapeutic options and reduces opportunities in cases that do not respond to existing treatments. The new unit would enable research specifically designed for children and adolescents, moving forward with greater speed and precision.
“With this technology we will be able to develop drugs specifically designed for the vulnerabilities of pediatric cancer, multiplying the speed compared to the more manual technologies currently in use,” explains Dr. Lucas Moreno, Head of the Pediatric Oncology and Hematology Department at Vall d’Hebron University Hospital and of the Childhood Cancer and Hematological Diseases Group at the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR).
“Every year more than 1,000 cases of childhood cancer are diagnosed in Spain, more than 170 of them in Catalonia. These figures highlight the urgency of promoting specialized research that expands therapeutic options and offers stronger hope to patients and their families. That is why we chose International Childhood Cancer Day to carry out this action and give maximum visibility to a cause that needs the full attention and commitment of society,” adds Cristina Sanz, Director of the Albert Bosch Foundation.
The campaign aims to raise the €910,000 needed to launch this scientific infrastructure and take a decisive step forward in childhood cancer research. Choosing a football press conference was no coincidence. Sport is a shared, emotional and cross-cutting meeting point, capable of amplifying messages that deserve to be heard. Taking this conversation out of medical environments and bringing it to a highly visible stage is a direct way to engage the whole of society.
Following this action, the campaign will continue with an open call for public collaboration, inviting society to “put on the jersey” and join the first collective signing in history. A signing that can change the future of childhood cancer research and to which everyone can contribute by making a donation at
https://fundacioabosch.givenow.help/elfitxatgequeensfalta