Help Cancer Patients Access Medications!

#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!

In the last few months, we focused on supporting patients with adrenal cancer.  The medication for this type of cancer, mitotane, has been in use for many years, but after the breakup of Soviet Union, Russia stopped producing it.   We have been purchasing mitotane in Canada for 25 Russian patients this year.  In addition to mitotane, there are other medications that are not available in Russia.  Often, they are new and effective drugs that are available in the US, Europe and other developed countries.

This month, our goal is to raise funds to support Andrei, a young man from Moscow, who underwent bone marrow transplantation two years ago.  Unfortunately, in August he was diagnosed with relapse of leukemia that is resistant to commonly used medications.  Andrei was recommended a new drug, ponatinib, which targets the rare mutation that Andrei has.  However, ponatinib is not registered in Russia and has to be purchased abroad.  The medication is very expensive and Andrei's young family cannot afford it.  We hope that next week you can join our efforts to help Andrei access this medication!

Please mark your calendars for Thursday’s Bonus Day on October 5th! On this day, $50,000 Incentive Fund will be available to share by all donations received that day. Our share will be determined by what percentage of the total funds we raise on Bonus Day.   For example, if we raise 5% of the total dollars raised on Bonus Day, we will be awarded 5% – or $2,500 – of the Incentive Fund. This means that donations will count throughout the entire day!  No rush to donate the minute the contest opens!  But keep in mind the hours - Bonus Day begins at 9:00:01 EDT on Thursday (16:00 Moscow time), October 5th, 2017, and ends at 23:59:59 EDT on October 5th, 2017.

 Many thanks from our team,