We're excited to launch a permanent collection of stories for our community to share.
More than 5 million children in the U.S. have a parent battling cancer; Kesem was founded to ensure they would never be alone. Over our 25-year history Kesem has created a legacy of support where campers grow into strong, compassionate adults. Families have seen this transformation in their children. Now, there’s data to prove it.
In a peer-reviewed paper published in January 2026 in Supportive Care in Cancer, a highly respected medical journal, Georgetown University’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center found that Kesem works: our programs improve children’s well-being, sense of belonging, emotional expression, coping skills, and confidence. The findings highlight how intentional, peer-based programs can help children thrive in the face of their parent’s cancer. In other words: joy, connection, and community aren’t just nice to have—they truly matter and Kesem creates them.
The publication of these findings marks an important and affirming moment for Kesem, proving what we’ve known to be true for 25 years now. Camp Kesem is clinically proven to improve the lives of kids facing a parent’s cancer.
Children facing a parent’s cancer diagnosis are an under-identified population and psychosocial programs for kids are rarely evaluated with standardized tools. As a result, the healthcare system lacks validated, trusted ways to assess the impact of interventions like Kesem’s programs. That makes the publication–and findings–of this paper so important.
We are honored to contribute to advancing the field of cancer support for families and proud to see proven results of our programs.
This paper is the culmination of a years-long partnership with Georgetown Lombardi, one that all of us at Kesem are deeply grateful for. And, we couldn’t have reached this level of recognition without the generous, ongoing support of our donors, supporters, and the thousands of alumni who have made Kesem what it is today, one campfire at a time.
We're excited to launch a permanent collection of stories for our community to share.
