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Cuddles Foundation porvides holistic nutrition support to children afflicted with cancer. They have reached over 6,000 children in 2015 alone and about 18,000 children from 2012 to end-2015. Their program has reached to 7 hospitals across 5 locations (Mumbai, Delhi, Chandigarh, Bangalore, and Dervan in Maharashtra).

Some of their initiatives are:

• Ration program: Only 2 out of 10 cancer-afflicted children survive in India, compared to 8 out of 10 worldwide. Malnourished children are 5 times more likely to die of cancer. The right nutrition can save more than 40% of the children who are fighting cancer every year. Under the “Chaky’s Food for all” program they provide ration (basic food requirements) to families in Wadia Hospital to help them prepare and feed nutritious meals to their child. The program is named after the late Chaky, an enthusiastic 18 year old girl, who mobilized many from her community to donate food. Cuddles estimates that the decrease in treatment abandonment rates from 21% to 3% at Tata Memorial Hospital can be directly attributed to nutritional intervention.
• Nutritional Supplements: Cuddles Foundation makes sure the kids who come in for treatment get the nutritious supplements they need to ensure that they are strong enough for chemotherapy treatment. Eggs are one of nature’s super foods; their egg project (StrEGGnth!), is a great way to help children get the nutrition they need to withstand chemo and fight their cancer.
• Nutrition Fellowship: As a part of their knowledge building initiative, they supported the Regional Nutrition Fellowship Program at Tata Memorial Hospital in March 2015. This will help have specialized individuals working to provide standardized, state of the art care to patients. 20 students of nutrition science attended this with leading global and national experts as faculty.
• International Workshop on Nutrition: Cuddles Foundation was a supporter of the International Workshop on Nutrition held at Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, in September 2014. The event was held under the aegis of International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP) and the Indian Academy of Pediatrics. International and Indian pediatric oncology nutrition experts came together with the objective to find the best care for children suffering from cancer in India.