NORWICH – In the ongoing battle against cancer, the St. Baldrick's Foundation is keeping childhood cancer at the forefront.

For 10 years, the St. Baldrick's Foundation has helped raise awareness of childhood cancer in the Chenango County area by advocating for promising research that will lead to a cure. Its mission is to lessen the impact of the disease nationwide by working closely with hospitals, pediatric oncologists, and volunteers in the local community through a one of a kind head shaving event.

The St. Baldrick's Foundation will once again bring its efforts to Chenango County during the annual head shaving fundraiser on Saturday, March 15, at the American Legion located at 29 Sheldon St., Norwich. Registration starts at 4 p.m., followed by head shaving at 5 p.m.

According to local St. Baldrick's coordinator A. Jones, this annual event has made a big splash in childhood cancer research, raising a total $166,000 in the Norwich area since 2004.

Nationwide, the St. Baldrick's Foundation has awarded $127 million in grants since 2005 – nearly $25 million of which was awarded in 2013 alone. The charity also allocated funds to 215 children's hospitals throughout the United States, which in turn benefitted millions of children diagnosed with cancer.

According to the St. Baldrick's Foundation website, fundraising efforts are a necessity as less than 4 percent of the National Cancer Institute's budget is directed to childhood cancer research. There are over a doze types of childhood cancer but in the last 20 years, only two new drugs have been developed specifically to treat children with cancer.