Prevalence and Incidence Research Results

A Child Is Diagnosed With a Critical Illness Every 25 Seconds, According to Make-A-Wish® International Research on the Numbers of Children Eligible to Receive a Wish

• Make-A-Wish International Calls for ‘WishMakers’ to Show Their Support This World Wish Day, April 29th
• Research shows approximately 1.25 million children are diagnosed with a critical illness each year across Make-A-Wish International’s 40 Affiliate countries and territories, which makes them eligible for a wish to be granted. This equates to one child every 25 seconds.
• Make-A-Wish International requires increased support in order to reach their vision of granting the wish of every eligible child. 

Make-A-Wish International has announced the results of a research project which, for the first time, presents country-specific data on children who are eligible to have their wishes granted. The research, announced on World Wish Day, April 29th, shows that approximately 1.25 million children are diagnosed with a critical illness across 40 Make-A-Wish Affiliate countries and territories each year, making them eligible for a wish to be granted. This equates to one child every 25 seconds. Make-A-Wish International requires increased support in order to reach their vision of granting the wish of every eligible child. They are appealing to the public to sign up to become ‘WishMakers’ and help grant more wishes.

Make-A-Wish International engaged Research For Impact (RFI), a Singapore-based think tank, to conduct the research. The project, initiated in 2022, involved collaborating with the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), a research institute working in global health statistics and impact evaluation located at the University of Washington. Using the Global Burden of Disease database (GBD), we created country-specific pediatric disease profiles for qualifying conditions.

The research also looked at the breakdown of illness categories among children eligible for a wish to be granted, showing that blood conditions, neurological conditions, cancer and kidney conditions account for the highest proportion of cases. The results will be used to inform Make-A-Wish International growth plans and strategies, identify potentially underserved populations, guide medical outreach and relationship building, anticipate wish demand and support fundraising efforts.

The research has been announced on World Wish Day, April 29th, which marks the anniversary of 7-year-old Chris’ wish to be a police officer, granted in 1980. Chris was living with leukemia and his wish was granted just days before he sadly passed away. Inspired by the impact, some of those involved in Chris’s wish decided to create Make-A-Wish, and in turn, sparked the global wish-granting movement that has led to more than 585,000 life-changing wishes being granted. This World Wish Day, Make-A-Wish International is appealing for people to show their support and become ‘Wishmakers’ by donating, fundraising or signing up at worldwish.org.

“This landmark research has shown us just how far we need to go in order to achieve our vision of granting the wish of every eligible child. Critical illness steals childhood from a child, but through helping to grant wishes, WishMakers have the power to return it. This World Wish Day, we encourage everyone to become a WishMaker by donating, fundraising or supporting us in other ways to help make wishes come true for children around the world facing critical illnesses,” said Luciano Manzo, President and CEO at Make-A-Wish International.

Read more about this research.