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stouffville suntribune thursday oct j3 2005 17 1908 sickkids installs the first milk pasteurization plant in canada 30 years before it becomes mandatory this act all but eliminates diseases transmitted by unpasteurized milk like tuberculosis salmonella and ecoli pasteurization dramatically decreases infant mortality in canada 1930 sickkids develops a new infant cereal that later becomes famous the world over as tablum this fortified cereal the first of its kind significantly reduces death from malnutrition the major cause of infant mortality at the turn of the last century 1954 sickkids is the first hospital in canada to establish a research institute and the first to emphasize the role of science in patient care 1963 sickkids performs the first widely successful surgery to correct transposition of the great arteries of the heart the birth defect known as blue babies before this procedure this condition used to kill 9 out of 10 patients in their first year 1965 sickkids develops a lab procedure that cuts the time needed to diagnose whooping cough from 5 days to 30 minutes 1979 sickkids invents a radically different ventilator now used worldwide that gently shakes oxygen into the lungs of children with severe lung disease sparing many of them painful lung bypass procedures 1989 sickkids discovers the gene which when defective causes cystic fibrosis the most fatal genetic disease killing canadian children today 1994 sickkids provides the first biological proof that secondhand cigarette smoke can affect a fetus 1994 sickkids develops a new way to treat retinoblastoma a cancer of the eye that affects infants this new treatment avoids radiation and can save the babys eye 1996 sickkids identifies a human blood cell that regenerates the entire blood system this discovery enables the development of new treatments for blood diseases such as leukemia thalassemia and sickle cell anemia 1996- sickkids identifies a gene that causes colon cancer colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancerrelated death among canadian adults 1997 sickkids invents a powder iron supplement that improves the lives of millions of children around the world suffering from anemia due to iron deficiency 1998 sickkids discovers the first gene that causes lafora disease one of the most severe forms of teenage onset epilepsy listed here are some of our proudest moments moments that wouldnt have happened if not for you your donations have led to discoveries that continue to have a profound impact on the lives of children youve funded breakthroughs that have meant less pain for children a higher survival rate and less time in the hospital and while weve traveled far and discovered much many groundbreaking milestones still he ahead which is why we continue to need your help because the reality is when your donations stop so do the breakthroughs so please call 18884sickkids or visit our website at sickkidsbelievecom and give generously because the better we get the better they get 1999 sickkids concludes that occupational exposure to organic solvents during pregnancy increases the chances of major birth defects 2000 sickkids establishes the first pediatric ms clinic in north america and canadas first national registry to track multiple sclerosis in children 2001 sickkids discovers that infant heart transplants can be performed safely and successfully even when the blood types of the donor and recipient dont match 2001 sickkids as part of an international team identifies a gene responsible for inherited prostate cancer prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer diagnosed in canadian men today 2002 sickkids discovers that newborns that experience repeated painful procedures in their first days of life become hypersensitive to pain and learn to anticipate it even before it happens this research results in new ways to decrease pain for infants and children 2002 sickkids finds that exposure during pregnancy to the antidepressant drug paroxetine is associated with a high rate of neonatal complications 2002 sickkids shows that bicycle helmet legislation leads to fewer bicyclerelated head injuries in children 2003 sickkids compiles the complete dna sequence of chromosome 7 and decodes nearly all of the genes on this medically important portion of the human genome chromosome 7 contains 1455 genes some of which when altered cause diseases such as cystic fibrosis leukemia and autism 2003 sickkids pinpoints the link between diabetes and nervous system autoimmunity resulting in new therapeutic and diagnostic targets 2003 sickkids identifies for the first time a cancer stem cell responsible for brain tumours this discovery may change how this deadly condition is studied and treated in the future 2003 sickkids links maternal folic acid intake to a decrease in neuroblastoma a deadly childhood cancer 2004 sickkids shows an association between pediatric multiple sclerosis ms and the epsteinbarr virus indicating that exposure to the virus at a certain time in childhood may be an important environmental trigger for the development of ms proud community partner