Newsletters

Our newsletter this month is all about Support Groups. But don't let that term "support" put you off -- if you feel you don't need support, then maybe the support group needs you. We’re all treading a slightly different path with our WM so what you’ve learned and experienced along the way, and perhaps now take for granted, might be a gem of insight or information for someone just starting out. Just to say there are all kinds of reasons for attending a Support Group meeting. Some think of them as a community of like-minded people; others need some of that [...]

Thanks to our members’ generous donations over the past, we have been able commit to funding two exciting new research projects.  Now comes the hard part – we need to raise $200,000.  Our thermometer will keep track of our accomplishments as this progresses.  We'll update this post from time to time, to track our progress. In partnership with the IWMF, we are funding these two major WM research projects: We are supporting another research project with Dr. Zachary Hunter at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at Harvard University.He is looking ever more closely at the inner workings of WM with a [...]

As WMers, people with a chronic disease, we are subject to regular medical tests. And with those tests comes medical test anxiety. We all get it, whether all the time, or only at major points in our journey with WM. It’s a common and understandable emotional response. Our April newsletter takes a look at the physiological, psychological and emotional responses that make up medical test anxiety so you can recognize them in yourself at test time. And, more importantly, we look at what you can do to understand and manage these instinctive and powerful responses. Follow this link for our discussion [...]

If you've ever wondered where your donated dollars go when we support a research project, we take a look at the front line of the fight against WM in our newsletter this month. We also go behind the scenes to give you a glimpse of the practical and operational complexities of cancer research -- where the work takes place, the personnel required, the many and various directions of research being explored, the extraordinary tools of modern cancer research, and how modern cancer treatments finally emerge from the lab to the real world as our therapies. Follow this link and it'll give [...]

As winter approaches ... Our member survey last March had many useful suggestions for newsletter topics, one of which was ‘healthy living with WM’ so that’s what we’ll discuss as the challenges of winter pertaining to mood, mind and body approach. And in other news, our Fall Newsletter covers: At the IWMF Ed Forum in April, Brenda Rogers, the WMFC Co-Support Group Leader in Vancouver, introduced Dr Treon to our brand-new video on Newly Diagnosed WM patients that we developed in co-operation with BeiGene and CTC Communications. A welcome expansion of our Patient Support Group network – the Manitoba and Friends [...]

May is Research Month Spring has sprung and with May upon us, it’s time to thank you for a successful Research Month. With our fundraising and research so intertwined we’d like to give you an idea of the current state of WM research and its future so we’ve put together a simplified snapshot of a complicated issue. The WMFC is always proud to remind you that most of our donations go towards funding research.  Donations also fund our goal of taking patient education programmes like the Educational Forums online to make them more accessible across Canada.  Your donations also go to [...]

Thanks to an Educational Grant from BeiGene, we are very pleased to bring you two new, professionally-produced items: A Symptom Tracker:  Available from our web page here, you can either print this out and write on it, or download it to your device and use it as a fillable form.   This is designed for you to track symptoms that you may be aware of, physically; we're afraid you'll have to find your own way if you want to graph and track your blood test results. A new WMFC brochure:  Available from a different web page, here.  We will be distributing [...]

As a Canadian Cancer Charity, for over 20 years we have relied entirely upon dedicated and passionate volunteers to help us offer support and education to WM patients and their families, as well as to raise money for research to ultimately find a cure for WM. To continue expanding this amazing story, WE NEED YOUR HELP! If you have ever considered volunteering for a charity and you have a few hours each week to spend helping our WM efforts, we would love to talk with you.  Whatever your experience or time constraints, we can find you a rewarding opportunity. Specifically, we [...]