The Khalid Shoman family, Suha, Omar and Aysha, donated USD $2 million to transform the current Nuclear Medicine Unit into a comprehensive Nuclear Medicine Department of excellence.

The donation was used to purchase a PET/CT scan machine, the first of its kind in Jordan. The PET/CT Scan is a combination of a PET and a CT scan which gives the added advantage of a full three dimensional view of an organ giving maximum diagnostic accuracy. The machine is one of the most important tools that doctors have at their disposal to help them detect, diagnose, and evaluate cancer in its earliest and most curable stages. It is also the only imaging technique that can distinguish between a benign and a malignant tumor. It also reveals the extent (staging) of the disease, assesses how well patients are responding to treatment, determines if patients are cancer free and monitors the body for recurrences of the disease.

At the King Hussein Cancer Center, on average 60-80 patients use the PET/CT scan machine every month.

Objective
The Citigroup Foundation, which acts as the social investment arm for Citigroup, donated USD $25,000 for the "Back to School Program" in 2006. This Program was launched in January 2007 and aims at providing pediatric cancer patients at the King Hussein Cancer Center with tutoring in their respective studies while undergoing their treatment.

Justification
The diagnosis and treatment of childhood cancer takes a long time, and is subject to both short-term and long-term side effects. Childhood cancer causes many disruptions in patients’ lives. It temporarily removes children from their homes, separates them from their friends, interrupts their schooling and generally makes their lives difficult. Children can spend 6-8 consecutive weeks in hospital in total isolation from the outside world. In many cases treatment can take up to 2-3 years. Such disruptions, if not addressed, can have a debilitating effect on patients’ overall well-being long after their illness has been cured. It is also worth mentioning that children undergoing cancer treatment are often exposed to high doses of radiation and toxic chemotherapy both of which are known to have long-term effects on their cognitive skills. Accordingly, giving children access to education at this vulnerable time is considered conducive to their overall rehabilitation process. Not only does it give patients the chance to continue their education but more importantly it helps them cope with their disease and endure their often lengthy and traumatic hospital stay.

Implementation
The Back to School Program targets patients aged 5-12 years and caters for an average of 30 patients. However, not all 30 patients will be participating in the Program at the same time. Some children may be too young to receive any kind of formal teaching while others may be physically unable to participate. In addition, a child may be able to study one day, but not the next.

The Program has hired two female teachers seconded by the Ministry of Education (MOE). As such, the Program adopts the MOE curriculum as well as adopting an e-learning approach to education primarily through internet enabled learning. The latter is delivered through ‘Menhaj’ an educational portal certified by the Jordanian Ministry of Education. E-learning is flexible insofar as it allows children to work at their own pace, in their own time and in their own rooms. In addition, e-learning is stimulating, fun, user-friendly and uses extensive visuals. It also caters to individual needs. As such it is a lot more suited for children at the Center than conventional teaching approaches and children are more likely to respond to it particularly those whose physical and mental well-being have been compromised as a result of the disease and treatment.

The "Back to School Program" reflects the Center’s commitment to providing comprehensive cancer care to patients by treating them as a ‘whole’ focusing on their physical, emotional, social, economic, environmental and spiritual needs.