A determined young woman powerfully kicks “Cancer,” delivering it a crumbling blow.

The drawing is one of 30 art pieces now on display at Walter Reed in the America Building’s fourth-floor hallway of the Pediatrics Department. The exhibit celebrates Walter Reed’s young cancer survivors.

The artists, including pediatric hematology and oncology patients, their families and Walter Reed staff, gathered for an opening of the exhibit on Sept. 10, with some sporting gold shoes and ribbons, the color of awareness for childhood cancer. Each piece of art is personal, representing the experiences of patients, family members, staff or caregivers at the Pediatric Hematology Oncology [Hem/Onc] clinic.

The Pediatric Hem/Onc clinic at Walter Reed is a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary clinic. “We care for all the disorders under the sun — from simple consultations to complex chemotherapy and medication delivery,” said Army Lt. Col. (Dr.) Lauren M. Vasta, Service Chief, Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Program Director, Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship, and Associate Professor Uniformed Services University (USU). “We are also the only pediatric hematology and oncology fellowship training site in the DoD.”

Vasta explained that the Hem/Onc clinic belongs to the “Children’s Oncology Group,” the largest pediatric group in the U.S and takes a 360-degree approach to patients.

“This enables us to bring clinical trials and budding cancer care options to our patients,” she said. “We also provide psychosocial health, with a dedicated behavioral health provider, an art therapist, and a child-life specialist.”

The Childhood Cancer Awareness art exhibit is just one example of an art therapy project for Hem/Onc patients.

“Art has a huge positive impact on the wellness of our patients; it helps them navigate through very tumultuous times. It’s the hardest thing they’ve had in their lives,” said Vasta.

Vasta is a firm believer that creating art helps her patients through difficult times.

“We have brilliant artists who have painted and drawn over our entire clinic. It’s our mission to be with them on that journey, to share the challenges and to walk with them side-by-side wherever the journey takes us,” she said.

Claire Wetterer, MPS, ATR-BC, LCPAT, Creative Arts Therapist-Murtha Cancer Center Research Program, is the art therapist for the pediatric hematology oncology population at Walter Reed.

“My role is to provide art therapy to patients at the Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Service, and to follow them throughout their treatment journeys, which includes outpatient clinic visits and inpatient stays on site. The Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Service serves active-duty military and military dependents aged 0-26. However, I typically provide art therapy to patients aged 2-26, and I also support the whole family throughout treatment,” said Wetterer.

Wetterer says her goal is “to create a safe space for self-expression, allowing Pediatric Hem/Onc patients process their thoughts and feelings surrounding their illnesses through art and talk therapy — in real time — as they go through treatment, so they may return to their lives as normal kids or young adults, without needing to carry all of that experience with them.”

Wetterer says this exhibit features art by patients with cancer or blood disorders, and that “the purpose of the art show is to honor those journeys and highlight them, particularly during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.”

The Childhood Cancer Awareness art exhibit can be viewed through the end September.