Our Story - Bladder Cancer Canada

BLADDER CANCER CANADA is the first and only Canadian patient advocacy organization dedicated to bladder cancer issues.

The story of Bladder Cancer Canada (BCC) began with two people just like you – or perhaps like your loved ones who have bladder cancer—David Guttman and Jack Moon. Their medical teams tended to the disease in their bodies, but they realized nourishment for their inner beings was missing – and was just as critical to their recovery.

They needed other bladder cancer patients to talk to about their fears and uncertainty. Someone to help them find up-to-date information about diagnosis, treatment options and prognosis. At that time, there was no one to turn to. So, in 2009, they formed Bladder Cancer Canada to fill the void.

Although they were ordinary bladder cancer patients, what they accomplished is extraordinary. Today, BCC is a national, registered charitable non-profit corporation that has helped untold numbers of bladder cancer patients and their caregivers to cope with this disease. Our founders’ vision was to improve patient support – and it remains the cornerstone of BCC’s mission.

WHAT IS OUR VISION FOR THE FUTURE?

In short: awareness, support and research to create a world
where bladder cancer is just a memory

We’re working to achieve this vision through the efforts of volunteers across Canada and with the support of distinguished, leading medical professionals on our Medical Advisory Board and our Research Advisory Board, who are also volunteers. Bladder Cancer Canada’s Mission is three-fold:

SUPPORT

Help bladder cancer patients
and their support teams address the day-to-day issues of this disease

AWARENESS

Increase awareness of bladder cancer among the general public and medical community

RESEARCH

Fund research which pursues
the diagnosis, treatment
and elimination of bladder
cancer

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN TO YOU?

Most importantly, we’re here for you. Our trained volunteers offer you one-on-one understanding and help by phone and on line. We can even arrange a personal visit, if you need it. We created this website as a central information point for bladder cancer patients and their caregivers.

Here, you’ll find a wealth of information and educational materials about bladder cancer, including Patient Guidebooks written by bladder cancer patients and their caregivers. You’ll also find excellent discussion forums here, which offer advice and support to help you unravel the mysteries of bladder cancer and to feel more confident and comfortable coping with this disease.

You can also attend Patient Education Meetings, held several times a year in different cities across Canada. You’ll hear first-hand stories from other bladder cancer patients and valuable information and insights from medical professionals.

WHERE DOES BCC GET ITS FUNDING?

The majority of our funding – about 75% – comes from money raised during our annual Bladder Cancer Awareness Walks in about 20 cities across Canada. We encourage you to join a walk in the city nearest you, so that you can help us provide support to other bladder cancer patients and their caregivers. The walks are usually held in September and you can find more information about them on this website.

We also receive smaller amounts of funding through sponsorships, donations (including estate gifting) and investing any surplus we may have.

As a non-profit organization, we are keenly aware of the need to keep our expenses to a bare minimum so that we can focus our financial resources on achieving our mission goals.

Our Executive Director, a part-time Program Assistant and two part-time Program Managers are the only paid staff. Administration expenses are extremely low, and the cost of fundraising through the annual walks is low when compared to other charity walks.

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OUR COMMITMENT TO TRANSPARENCY

View our annual

FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS

VIEW

View BCC’s volunteer

BOARD OF
DIRECTORS

VIEW