Webinar: Advocating for Rare Diseases

Webinar: Advocating for Rare Diseases

On June 30th, we hosted a fascinating and informative webinar titled “Advocating for Rare Diseases“.

We had Katelyn Laws (Rare Disease Legislative Advocates Program Coordinator) give a great outline of what advocacy is, what types of advocacy there are, and how to do it. AnCan’s Sarcoidosis virtual support group moderator Cathleen Terrano moderated and sparked fascinating conversation with our panelists Ritchie Johnson (Renal Medullary Carcinoma), Charles Mickles (Young Onset Parkinson’s Disease), and Trina Massey Davis (Sarcoidosis).

I had the pleasure of jumping in for the Q&A segment, which was a wonderful (and real!) discussion many topics, such as discouragement when advocating, how to write out your story, and more.

Watch this phenomenal presentation here:

 

Special thanks to Myovant Sciences – Pfizer, and Foundation Medicine for sponsoring this webinar.

 

 

 

To view the slides from this webinar, click here.

For information on our peer-led video chat VIRTUAL SUPPORT GROUPS, click here.

To SIGN UP for the Group or any other of our AnCan Virtual Support groups, visit our Contact Us page.

Solo Arts Heal with Jimmy Greenfield

Solo Arts Heal with Jimmy Greenfield

AnCan and The Marsh (well renown, long-established theater company with a large following in the Bay Area and venues in San Francisco and Oakland) collaborate every 4th Wednesday of the month for Solo Arts Heal! It just so happens to be the 4th Wednesday today, so be sure to check out a can’t miss SAH with The Marsh founder, Stephanie Weisman TONIGHT at 7:30 PT!

On May 26th, we had the pleasure of having Jimmy Greenfield!

Jimmy is a professional guitarist, singer and teacher from Washington, D.C. He has performed in many combinations as a soloist and bandleader in many different genres of music.

Jimmy performed jazz standards that are close to his heart. His mother exposed him to jazz daily from his earliest years. His fondest memories of her live on through these songs.

Watch this incredible performance here:

 

To SIGN UP for any of our AnCan Virtual Support group reminders, visit our Contact Us page.

Solo Arts Heal with Elizabeth McLachlan

Solo Arts Heal with Elizabeth McLachlan

AnCan and The Marsh (well renown, long-established theater company with a large following in the Bay Area and venues in San Francisco and Oakland) collaborate every 4th Wednesday of the month for Solo Arts Heal!

On April 28th, we had the pleasure of having Elizabeth McLachlan!

Elizabeth shared excerpts of how she uses creative pursuits like tap dancing and singing to express herself, undeterred by the challenges that multiple sclerosis (MS) has brought into her life. MS is a debilitating disease that attacks the brain and central nervous system.

Afterwards, Rick Davis and Elizabeth discussed how important creative expression is. We’re certain you’ll fall in love with Elizabeth too.

Watch this incredible performance here:

 

To SIGN UP for any of our AnCan Virtual Support group reminders, visit our Contact Us page.

Solo Arts Heal with Jackson Nogahl

Solo Arts Heal with Jackson Nogahl

Have you heard the good news? AnCan and The Marsh (well renown, long-established theater company with a large following in the Bay Area and venues in San Francisco and Oakland) are collaborating every 4th Wednesday of the month for Solo Arts Heal! (Click here to read more about this fantastic collaboration)

On March 24th, we had the pleasure of having our very first performer, Jackson Nogahl! He celebrated his ten-year anniversary with prostate cancer on Valentine’s Day 2021. He has been finding humor in his experiences living with this condition as he writes his memoir War and Pee.

He gave a virtual performance of The Rain Delay:

Chronicling his first day back to work after prostate surgery, this work weaves together the lessons of a 1990s skateboarder, tallboy beers, Clydesdale horses, a magic trick, the power of prayer, the most beautiful woman in the office, and above all else, Mother Nature.

Afterwards, Rick Davis and Jackson discussed the importance of connectivity, especially for those living with serious diseases and conditions.

Watch this hilarious, and thought provoking performance here:

 

To SIGN UP for any of our AnCan Virtual Support group reminders, visit our Contact Us page.

Understanding mRNA Covid-19 Vaccines with Dr. Herbert Geller

Understanding mRNA Covid-19 Vaccines with Dr. Herbert Geller

Have you checked out our page “All the Faces of AnCan” lately? We are always growing, and you might see some new faces! While we’ve discussed Dr. Herbert Geller (researcher and AnCan Advisory Board Member) previously on the blog, we have a special treat today. Dr. Geller was part of an esteemed panel explaining the science behind mRNA Covid-19 vaccines with CureTalks.

I find this  description of what mRNA means and brief explanation from CureTalks to be extremely helpful.

Messenger RNA vaccines, also called mRNA vaccines, are some of the first COVID-19 vaccines authorized for use in the United States. mRNA vaccines are a new type of vaccine to protect against infectious diseases. They teach the cells of our body to make a protein that triggers an immune response. This immune response leads to the production of  antibodies which protects us from getting infected if the real virus enters our body.

 

Be sure to check out this informative presentation, here!

 

To SIGN UP for any of our AnCan Virtual Support groups, visit our Contact Us page.