Physical Health United States Project #24007

Help Cancer Patients Access Medications!

by Advita Fund USA

Project Report | May 16, 2018
Worrisome News

By Marina Ouano | Project Leader

As relations between Russia and the West deteriorate, most of the impact is borne by the private citizens. Recently, access to modern medications, already inadequate, has become threatened by further restrictions and bans.

In April the U.S. Treasury announced new sanctions against oligarchs and senior officials from Russia. In response, Russian Duma began consideration of a bill that proposes a plethora of measures, including a ban on the imports of U.S.-made medications, which account for some 10% of the Russian pharmaceutical market and are used for treatment of leukemia and other forms of cancer, HIV, Hepatitis C, and many other conditions.

While there has been a public outcry against the ban on medications, a modified proposal would simply exclude specific descriptions of the categories of U.S.-made goods, and instead leave the determination of goods to ban to the government authorities' discretion.

We are watching closely the developments and are trying to assess their impact on the cancer patients we support. Although most of the medications we supply to the patients are shipped from Europe or Canada, they may be manufactured in the U.S. There is also a possibility of extending the ban to the U.S. allies. At this time, we anticipate increased difficulty with supply of our patients with modern medications. We hope that we can continue to rely on your support to help us find solutions to these new challenges and ensure cancer patients continue to have access to lifesaving medications.

Thank you so much for everything that you do!

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Feb 15, 2018
Let's share some love!

By Marina Ouano | Project Leader

Lesya

This week many of us celebrated Valentine's Day. Have we told you lately that we love you? We absolutely do!

Since we started this project to support patients with cancer who needed medications unavailable in Russia and other former Soviet Union countries, we have raised almost $22,000 and helped 35 patients. This is an amazing achievement and we could not have done it without your support!

Looking forward, the new year is promising some relief for the patients with adrenocortical cancer. The medication (mitotane) that was previously unavailable in Russia is about to be produced domestically, and we may no longer have to purchase it abroad for patients with this cancer. However, we still don't know how much the medicine will cost and who may be eligible to receive it for free. In addition, the patients who live in Russia but are not Russian citizen would still have to pay for it out of their own pockets.

Lesya is one such patient. She was born in Ukraine, but spent most of her life in St. Petersburg where she manages archives for a university. Lesya is multitalented: she dances, signs, and enjoys interior decorating and photography, as well as a variety of sports. Unfortunately, since 2014 she has been battling adrenocortical cancer. Mitotane is the medication that Lesya vitally needs, and this project's funds have been used to buy mitotane for her and other patients. In addition, several other medications were prescribed for Lesya that are also unavailable in Russia and have to be purchased abroad.

We are hoping that you will continue to support patients like Lesya. After the start of the year, we have received several new requests for help, and we want to make sure we are able to support all those in need. Please feel free to spread the word about our project if you believe what we do is important.

Many thanks from our team, and may your lives be filled with love!

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Nov 27, 2017
Why give on GivingTuesday, November 28th?

By Marina Ouano | Project Leader

#GivingTuesday is a global movement that opens year-end giving season with charity and gratitude. During this season of giving, nonprofits, families, businesses, and volunteers around the world will celebrate and support the change you are making in the world. Last year, over $168 million was raised for charitable organizations worldwide!

GlobalGiving is joining #GivingTuesday and offering bonus funds to be shared among all donations made that day! The more we raise, the more bonus funds we will receive. In addition, extra prizes will be offered to projects with the most donors or the most dollars raised.

So mark your calendars for Tuesday, November 28th! The Campaign starts at 00:00:01 EST and ends at 23:59:59 EST on Tuesday, November 28th, 2017. For our supporters in Russia, it would start at 8 am (Moscow time) and end at 8 am on Wednesday, November 29th.

And if you like the convenience of an automatic monthly donation, GlobalGiving will add a recurring match: all new recurring donations up to $200/month will receive a 100% match.

This is a great opportunity to support the patients needing modern medications! We do have some good news to share with you: the patients with adrenocortical cancer for whom we have been buying medications in Canada, will soon be able to receive this medicine from a local manufacturer in Russia that recently began production. We are working diligently to get these medications to the patients and reduce our costs.

However, many other newer drugs face delays with registration in Russia or are offered at much higher prices than in Europe or Canada. These drugs are generally more effective, less toxic and are better tolerated than the older generation medications. For some of our patients, these are the only medications that they respond to. It is critically important that we continue our work and deliver these medications to the patients who need them. Thanks again for your kindness and support!

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