“When you’re just starting your life, cancer forces you to face the end of your life and that impacts the rest of your life.”
(Wise words from the late Steve Webster)
I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia 25 years ago this month. Like many others, I learned first-hand how a cancer diagnosis affects every area of your life: career, relationships, fertility, mental health, hope for the future, and so much more. We know “cancer” doesn’t end when the appointments are over, and “survival” is about a lot more than just “surviving.”
As 22-year-old I faced an uncertain future, and always asked about the stats. I tried to imagine what life could look like as I was given a lot of predictions around a five-year survival rate — a timeline commonly tied to the idea of “cure.” Eventually I said, “Five-year survival?! I’m 22! What’s 50-year survival!?”
We focus so heavily on treatment, we’ve forgotten about recovery, we’ve forgotten about the rest of the patient’s life.
Today, on Giving Tuesday, I’m asking you to make a gift to YACC’s Recover Study. I’m asking you to help us learn much more about the lives of young adults dealing with cancer, their challenges, successes, wins and losses, and how we can better help them live a life worth loving. For the long haul.
In a time where traditional research takes an average of 17 years to reach the patient and only 12 per cent of studies ever get that far, YACC is changing the game for young adults with cancer in Canada and around the world.
The Recover Study is a community-led, longitudinal research project owned by YACC and the YACCers we serve. Our learnings will inform new programs and resources to tackle cancer-related issues head on while sharing accurate snapshots of life with cancer to other healthcare partners who can influence change in their own ways.
And we need your help! I set a goal of $25,000 (just a grand for every year I’ve been kicking cancer in the ass) to build a cohort of 2,000 participants who we will follow over time.
A gift before December 11, 2023 will be doubled by someone who has been in YACC’s corner since the very beginning!
- $25 will help cover the honorarium given to participants as a thank you for their time and knowledge.
- $50 will help pay for the subscription fees to software that will help us collect, protect, and analyze the data.
- $250 will help us work on new projects and initiatives to turn study findings into actions to help young adults live lives worth loving after a cancer diagnosis.
- $2,500 will keep our study leadership team of young adults connected and leading our effort during and after recruitment.
For your ongoing engagement and support, on behalf of the 5,000 YACCers in our community, we say thank you. Please remember, making a gift to YACC right now will change the lives of young adults diagnosed with cancer yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
Always…
Live life. Love life.
Geoff
