In this newsletter, meet the many faces of Bladder Cancer Canada 😁

Meet Michelle, our new Executive Director

Michelle Colero is Bladder Cancer Canada’s new Executive Director and has been with us since May this year, when she hit the ground running in her leadership efforts to guide the organization in our mission to raise awareness, support patients and fund research.

In this video, in the countryside near Michelle’s home in Prince Edward County, Michelle talks about this year’s Canada Walks for Bladder Canada, presented by Ferring Canada. “We need YOU to join us in our annual awareness walk,” says Michelle and it’s true!

Your support this year will help over 80,000 Canadians living with a bladder cancer diagnosis. According to Cancer Specific Stats for 2020, 12,000 Canadians will be diagnosed with bladder cancer this year.

“Waiting for and receiving a cancer diagnosis can be an extremely frightening and isolating experience,” says Michelle. “We want our bladder cancer community to know that we are there to support them every step of the way.”

Support services are extremely critical during this time and BCC offers several FREE services through our website including a discussion forum, a peer support program, online support groups, educational webinars, downloadable patient guidebooks and more. All these services are funded by the annual awareness walk and are available for free at www.bladdercancercanada.org.

To register or donate, visit www.bccwalk.ca today!

Presenting sponsor of this year’s Canada Walks for Bladder Cancer.

Call me Shirley (Volunteer Feature)

Shirley Amrolia, named after Shirley Temple, began volunteering at Bladder Cancer Canada (BCC) in early July, after seeing the help and support her friend, Jess, received while waiting for the results of the tests his doctor ran to check for bladder cancer (read Jess’s story here). After completing her Digital Content Marketing Writing course from the University of British Columbia, Shirley decided to donate 3 hours a day, 5 days a week to BCC as a Communications and Media Relations Assistant. During this time, Shirley has been writing much of the content that our readers have been seeing on social media and in emails, including a post about our online discussion forums, which resulted in our forum visitors doubling in a 24 hour period. Way to go, Shirley!

When Shirley is not volunteering her time with BCC, she continues her studies and practices her writing – in September she will begin a UX (User Experience) writing course. Prior to COVID, she enjoyed spending time in cafés, talking with her mom and dog Max (who are back home in India), travelling and dancing!

Shirley, in St. Lawrence Market in Toronto, ON

To celebrate her two-year anniversary in Canada on September 25^th, Shirley will be participating in this year’s Canada Walks for Bladder Cancer – if you’d like to donate to Shirley’s walk, you can find her on the Team Toronto page here.

We are so grateful for the volunteer work that Shirley has been doing for BCC and know that her passion and dedication will help the 12,000 Canadians that will be diagnosed with bladder cancer this year.

Are you interested in volunteering with Bladder Cancer Canada? Visit our website here to learn more.

“You’ve been looking tired lately” – A Patient Story

When Jonathan Peterson’s wife, Mandy, commented that he was looking tired, he had no reason to suspect that it was because of a form of cancer that he’d never heard of, lurking in his bladder. Jonathan certainly didn’t fit the profile of a bladder cancer patient. In his 40’s, Jonathan leads a healthy lifestyle; he doesn’t smoke, rarely drinks, follows a vegan diet and is active - often doing do-it-yourself projects at home or paddling the lakes in North Bay, Ontario with Mandy.

Months later, Jonathan would be admitted to the hospital with an injury from doing some construction work on his front deck. The young couple had no idea that this would be the beginning of a frightening process that would end with Jonathan being diagnosed with the word no one wants to hear.

We are honoured to work with Jonathan and his wife, Mandy, to share the story of his bladder cancer diagnosis. Through many surgeries, including a cystectomy and finally, BCG treatments, Jonathan thought to capture the ups and downs of his cancer journey through his writing and photography so that others in his life could share in what he was experiencing.

Jonathan and his wife, Mandy, waiting for test results in North Bay, Ontario.

We’ll be sharing Jonathan’s story over the coming months in an exclusive podcast and blog series – as we talk to him about all the things so many people don’t know about bladder cancer – including what it was like to see blood in his urine and his BCG treatments.

Don’t want to wait? If you think Jonathan’s story will help you now, get the insider scoop on Jonathan’s website here.

Please note that Jonathan’s story is his own personal experience and may not reflect your own diagnosis and treatments. As always, remember that stories shared on Jonathan’s site, the Bladder Cancer Canada blog, podcast or elsewhere are not a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment. The content on Jonathan’s site are the personal views of the writer and is for information only. Always consult your physician and do not rely on information you find on the internet when making decisions about your health.

Support is just a click away

Would you like to have your worries and questions addressed by a welcoming and non-judgmental group of people? We are here to help!

Bladder Cancer Canada’s online support groups are facilitated by volunteers who are cancer survivors, dedicated to helping and supporting patients and their caregivers. Our groups are community-based and meetings are held online via Zoom from the privacy and comfort of your home.

New in September, our first every online support group for our Francophone community will take place (in French). The first meeting will be on Saturday, September 4th, 2021 at 9:00am ET. To register and receive instructions on how to log in, please send an email to support@cancerdelavessiecanada.org or call 1-866-674-8889 to leave a message. Welcome to all francophones!

Click here to join one of our other compassionate support groups in your region! Remember, support is just a click away!

Get Support

Coming soon, VERITY–BCG™!

As many members of our bladder cancer community know, Canada has been facing a BCG shortage since 2019, when we reported about it on our website here. Merck Canada has been fulfilling approximately 75% of the BCG demand during the shortage and has plans to build a new facility to increase their production of this very important bladder cancer treatment. You can read more about the Merck expansion on our website here.

BCC has been deeply concerned about the current BCG shortage and its effects on the treatment of bladder cancer patients and have been urging Health Canada to bring a second supplier of BCG to Canada.

We are excited to announce that Verity Pharmaceuticals will be launching VERITY-BCG™, which will soon be available to the Canadian health care community. VERITY-BCG™ is currently in the final stages of approval from Health Canada, and it is anticipated that hospitals across the country will start to receive VERITY-BCG™ by the early fall.

Stay tuned as we share additional information about this very important development for bladder cancer patients across Canada.

Proud sponsor of this year’s Canada Walks for Bladder Cancer.

Many thanks to our latest fundraisers!

Many thanks to our friends and supporters who recently held personal fundraisers for anniversaries, birthdays and other important life events to support BCC and the work we do.

Recently, in Toronto, Ted and his children, Belle (10), Max (9) and Finn (9) held a fundraising lemon stand in memory of Ted’s Uncle Doug. Their outstanding efforts resulted in $1,132 being raised for Bladder Cancer Canada.

According to Ted, it’s really important that his children know that their efforts can make a difference and it’s true. For instance, a donation of $1,000 can fund a full week of study in the Bladder Cancer Canada Research Program.

It’s never too late to make a donation – big or small – to Bladder Cancer Canada’s general fund. Your donation will change lives!

Donate Now

Shout-outs this month goes to Ted and his family and also Julie! We so appreciate all that you’ve done!

Be recognized! Visit our website here to learn how to host your own fundraiser.

Please join us on social media where we’ll be sharing updates and photos from our bladder cancer community. These social media sites are a great resource for patients, survivors and caregivers.

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