FUNDRAISING IN A PANDEMIC
Multiple Myeloma March's new look
When you're dealing with a lesser known cancer that presents with ambiguous symptoms, mostly affects older people and often smoulders — inactive, for years at a time — you have to fight hard to stand out in the cancer world.
For years, Myeloma Canada executive director Martine Elias has worked with multiple myeloma patients and championed their cause, slowly, but surely raising awareness around the blood cancer that sends plasma cells into hyperdrive, messing with the production of healthy blood cells and wreaking havoc on a patient's bones and immune system, without a known cause or cure.
Thanks to advances in knowledge and treatment of the disease, Elias says, more Canadians are getting diagnosed earlier and living longer. But, with the disruptive nature of the COVID -19 pandemic on the charitable and health care sectors, it's unclear how significantly the arc of this progress will be challenged.
Myeloma Canada's major fundraiser, the Multiple Myeloma March, takes place annually in cities across the country. This year, a disaggregated version will happen in Ottawa-Gatineau on Sunday at 1 p.m., with teams doing their own walks in different neighbourhoods.
Based on the last year's total, Myeloma Canada has set its fundraising goal at a collective $650,000 from all marches across the country.
“Will we reach our goal? That's a big question. We don't know,” said Elias, who described COVID -19 as a “curveball” thrown at every charitable organization.
In mid-March, she saw direct donations to Myeloma Canada flatline, with local fundraising events such as garage or bake sales out of the question. They started working to transition the annual march to a COVID-friendly iteration and have so far raised about $355,000 of their $650,000 goal.
“We're quite surprised by that, to be very honest.”
Elias has also watched with concern the pandemic's toll on the lives of myeloma patients. In recent weeks, new sign-ups to the Myeloma Canada mailing list have skyrocketed from a handful per week to three or so every day. Elias believes this reflects a trend she's been hearing about anecdotally: pandemic-related delays to myeloma diagnoses.
“The first thing they do when they're diagnosed is go look on the website … Oh my God! What's this disease?” she explained.
Arleigh McCurdy is a hematologist who leads The Ottawa Hospital's myeloma program. It sees about 130 new patients in the Ottawa region annually and follows close to 1,000. In the COVID-19 era, the stability of their treatment is an open question.
“So far we have been able to deliver chemotherapy and other treatments without significant delay, but the margin of error is very slim,” McCurdy said.
“If the COVID hospitalizations rise, our ability to give chemotherapy will absolutely be compromised.
“I think this point is really crucially important for people to understand: In order for us to be able to continue to do live-saving things (such as) chemotherapy, bone marrow transplants, surgeries, we need the curve to stay flat.”
Glenn Hussey, a retired federal public servant, takes a daily chemo maintenance drug and visits The Ottawa Hospital for blood work monthly to ensure his disease remains in partial remission. As a myeloma patient with two stem cell transplants under his belt, he's acutely aware of the heightened risk to his health from COVID-19 in terms of treatment access and infection risk.
Hussey, who will lead Sunday's Multiple Myeloma March in the capital, hopes for a cure for the disease just as he hopes to see a COVID-19 vaccine in the near future.
The self-described “Greco fanatic” can't wait to get back to the gym. He misses selling 50/50 tickets for the Ottawa Senators Foundation and, as an avid soccer fan, dreams of travelling to England to see some matches.
In the meantime, though, “You adapt,” Hussey said. “I mean I think that's the key. You just adapt.”