A Way Forward that Cannot Be Stopped
March 19, 2019
To so many of you who’ve joined in our advocacy journey over the past four years, my heart beams with pride following today’s Federal Budget Announcement as I say: Thank you! Thank you for shining an unwavering, uncompromising, and unstoppable spotlight on the need for more ovarian cancer research funding in Canada. Today, the Government of Canada has taken steps to invest in needed research which will translate into scientific progress against this disease. This announcement makes an important commitment to women’s health and equity in health care – and it is a milestone made possible because of you.
Really - do you know what you’ve done?
You shared bravely and openly about your own personal experiences with the disease (or that of a loved one’s) and offered connection, camaraderie, and community to other women and their loved ones living with it too. Your nearly 13,000 signatures led to the reading of a Petition in the House of Commons urging government to make funding ovarian cancer research a priority. You wrote letters – also by the thousands – to your elected representatives across the country. You ‘stomped the pavement’ and invited people in your own networks to support the cause and to also speak to their elected representatives. Boldly, you went with us to Parliament Hill, Ottawa, participating in countless meetings and presentations with federal ministers, Members of Parliament, and committees, reinforcing with a collective and clear voice the need for an immediate investment of $10 million dollars for research that can help save lives.
And you didn’t just speak and advocate for you. You spoke for and in honour of women who couldn’t speak themselves because the disease claimed their lives far too soon. You spoke for, and sometimes alongside, all the people who are painfully impacted by ovarian cancer when a woman loses her life to this disease: Her partner, her children, her parents or other family members, her friends and neighbours, and her closest colleagues. You spoke also for the girls and women who are at risk of diagnosis with this disease in future.
In a short time we’ve built a powerful movement and collective presence that many members of government recognized as a force to be reckoned with, and were themselves compelled to champion and support. Together, we’ve made a mark and a strong impression and we ought to celebrate that! But we’re not done.
Today’s announcement may feel like a place to stop. But it’s not, actually. We are in a race to save more lives and today’s announcement only propels us forward and further. There are more opportunities ahead. There are opportunities to engage more champions and advocates to add to our collective voice; opportunities to build on today’s promising investment; and opportunities to engage other partners and funders in our mission to see women live fuller, better, and longer lives.
Thank you, once again, for your advocacy and support. Stay committed and stay tuned. We’re only just beginning.