US First Lady Jill Biden visits Tennessee hospital to meet Ukrainian children with cancer

US First lady Jill Biden, on Friday, visited St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Tennessee where she met Ukrainian children with cancer who had fled the war along with their families to seek treatment in America. As the Russian invasion of Ukraine began last month, St. Jude Hospital teamed up with foundations and NGOs in Poland to evacuate and treat children with cancer. According to ABC News, her visit was scheduled as a part of her and President Joe Biden’s Cancer Moonshot effort, which aims to slash cancer rates in the US by half over the next 25 years. 

During her visit, the First Lady met cancer survivors in addition to touring laboratories where research on T-cells and their ability to combat pediatric brain tumours is being conducted. “They seemed comfortable and they didn't seem sad,” Jill Biden said. “They were just like normal kids, like normal families. It was just, it's amazing," she added. She also lauded the hospital's effort to turn “devastation into hope.” 

Notably, the hospital’s collaboration with Polish non-profit organisations has helped over 600 young cancer patients, by translating medical records and coordinating convoys from the Ukrainian city of Lviv to the Unicorn Marian Wilemski Clinic, a summer resort converted into a triage centre in Poland. From there, sick children have been transported to cancer centres in Europe, Canada and the US, ABC News.

US mulling action against Russia

Meanwhile, the US is now planning action in the event of Russian strikes at NATO territory and the use of chemical weapons. As the war entered its second month, the national security advisor of the White House, Jake Sullivan stated on Friday that he has asked for a special "Tiger Team" - a team of experts -- to plan for a possibility if Russia uses chemical weapons in Ukraine or strikes NATO territory, as per the reports of Axios.In response to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's assertion that his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will next invade eastern European countries, Sullivan said this is one of the reasons US President Joe Biden has authorised more US soldiers to deploy to NATO's eastern flank.   

(Image: AP)