Happy new year!
We are delighted to announce that the Save Your Skin Foundation is now officially ten years old! It has been an incredible honour to represent melanoma patients, caregivers, and survivors across Canada and to be a voice for those who have lost their battle with the disease.
2017 will be another exciting year for the melanoma landscape, with increasing availability of innovative treatment options. As survival rates are taking an upturn due to these new treatments, we are excited to see that our focus now includes supporting a growing community of melanoma survivors. Hope for survival has become a viable option.
This progress comes with challenges. Treatments are still expensive, and the sequencing of treatments and timely negotiations continue to be problematic. Ensuring equal timely access of treatments to people who need them always has been, and continues to be, our primary goal. In 2017, we look forward to working on these challenges with our patients, caregivers, physicians, partners, and decision makers. When we were a small organisation in 2006, our goal was to provide compassionate care and support to those touched by melanoma; today, we are proud to say that we are able to do so collaboratively with the melanoma community.
We could not have come this far without your support. To all of our corporate and pharmaceutical funders, and every person who has donated: thank you. To every member of government and medical professional or scientist we have worked with: thank you. Most importantly, thank you to every patient who has ever contacted the Save Your Skin Foundation. We learn something new from every patient we encounter, regardless of your level of involvement with us.
By working as a team over the past ten years, we have made great strides in the treatment of melanoma and other skin cancers. By doing the same in 2017, we can only continue to make progress towards eliminating this disease and making a difference in the lives of many.
Sincerely,
Kathleen Barnard
Save Your Skin Founder and President Kathleen Barnard presents at the 2017 Canadian Melanoma Conference
