First Advanced Prostate Cancer Meeting
May 21, 2011
by Winston Klass
Just over a year ago six members of the Newmarket, Brampton, and Toronto support groups met to discuss the feasibility of a special support group for advanced prostate cancer survivors. Feedback from advanced as well as regular prostate cancer survivors had indicated that regular support meetings may not be fully
catering to emotional and other needs of advanced prostate cancer survivors. At the end of this meeting the decision was made to launch a joint experimental online support group, with the understanding that at some point this group may progress to a full-fledged support group tailored to advanced prostate cancer survivors.
The definition of an advanced prostate cancer survivor was left open, with the decision to join our group left to individual assessments of relevance.
At this early stage our group activities follow relatively simple routines. Any newcomer circulates a profile of his prostate cancer journey (decision points, treatments, drugs, etc.) and members are invited to respond with advice by email or telephone under the guidance of a moderator. The moderator also circulates relevant information periodically from research papers and other sources.
The Calgary Warriors, a pioneer support group for advanced prostate cancer survivors, has provided strong leadership and encouragement…access to their
regular newsletters and Ken Dreger (a leader of this group) monitors our email traffic and helps us to refine group procedures. Our support group has grown to approximately 20 members and, with the Calgary Warriors size of 50 approximately, there is potential for significant growth of our membership.
Our first face to face meeting on Wednesday March 15 th provided the opportunity for direct sharing of information and comparison of journeys.
This went over very well and it was decided that the group will meet quarterly.
Our next meeting is at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday June 21 st at Valleyview Residence, 541 Finch Avenue West., (behind North York General Hospital, Branson branch)
In time, our support group will likely become the local chapter of a national online support network, thereby benefitting from advice and support
from survivors all across Canada.
Anyone who would like to benefit from the type of support that we provide may contact us at PCCN-Toronto, via email info@pccntoronto.ca or by calling our hotline number – 416-932-8820.
Prostate Cancer: The Latest Lifesaving Information
April 20, 2011
Prostate Cancer: The Latest Lifesaving Information
An evening talk on Prostate Cancer
Sunnybrook Speaker Series
Wednesday, April 20, 2011 6:30-8:30 p.m Read more
New program at Sunnybrook Hospital shortens waiting times for prostate cancer diagnoses!
March 31, 2011
Original article from CTV.ca News Staff
A Toronto hospital says it’s setting what it hopes is a new benchmark for telling men whether they have prostate cancer.
Instead of giving men their biopsy results in a matter of weeks, they receive them in just 72 hours. Read more
Awareness Night Birthday Celebration – Nov. 25, 2009
November 27, 2009
Special birthday cake celebrating 15 years of educating, raising awareness and support.
Team touts cancer ‘lab on a chip’
October 8, 2009
(M2M comment- Dr. Aaron Wheeler at the Canadian Cancer Society Innovative Research in Cancer Event, Sept. 23, 2009, showed a similar device he is developing to detect Prostate Cancer.)
Joseph Hall HEALTH REPORTER TORONTO STAR
Aaron Wheeler holds a petri dish bearing a lump of breast tissue that resembles, in size and appearance, a piece of chewed gum.
In his right, the University of Toronto chemist holds a microchip array, about the size of a credit card, bearing a drop of red liquid about a thousand times smaller than the glob of flesh. The drop represents the minute amount of cells that Wheeler’s tiny board needs to accurately gauge estrogen levels in a woman’s breast tissue. Read more
PMH clinicians map group at high risk for aggressive, hidden prostate cancer
October 8, 2009
from University Health Network
Clinical researchers at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) can now answer the question that baffles many clinicians – why do some men with elevated prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels who are carefully monitored and undergo repeated negative biopsies still develop aggressive prostate cancer? Read more
2008 Group News
May 17, 2008
Pictured above are some of our volunteers who attended the Man to Man training session on Tuesday October 28, 2008 at Valleyview Residence. Pearse Murray, Ron Benson, Philip Albert, Phil Segal, David Lunt, Denis Farbstein, David Fine, John Dell and Gordon Burchill.
Pictured above are some of our volunteers who attended the Man to Man training session on Tuesday October 28, 2008 at Valleyview Residence. Ted Berman, Aaron Bacher, Allan Lappin, Stanley Mednick, Winston Klass, Bill Bryant and Harry Lockwood.
Pictured above are some of our volunteers who attended the Man to Man training session on Tuesday October 28, 2008 at Valleyview Residence. Jim Norton, Jerry Garshon, Dick Arai, Phil Taylor, Moe Wagman, Irwin Pressman, Richard Lorie, Robert Abelson, and Bernard Shoub.
The first night of “Dimensions of Cancer”, organized by the Cancer Information Series Planning Committee at the Odette Cancer Centre, took place on Thursday September 4, 2008 at the Toronto Botanical Garden. Pictured above are the guest speakers: Man to Man Chairman Aaron Bacher and his wife Ronnie, and the cast of the play “Like Fish Out of Water: Men Being Helpful to Women with Cancer”: Moderator Janet Canavan, Ross Gray, Ph.D., and Paul Soren.
2007 Group News
May 17, 2007
At our September 2007 Awareness Night meeting Man to Man and Side by Side honoured Dick and Aki Arai for their many years of devoted service to our two support groups. Pictured above are Jim Moran who made the special presentation, Roz Wagman who presented Aki with a dozen red roses, and our honourees Aki and Dick Arai. Congratulations.
On July 25, 2007 Man to Man honoured former Chairman Moe Wagman and his wife Roz, a long-time supporter of Side by Side. Pictured above are Man to Man Vice-Chair Sol Dennis, who made the special presentation to the Wagmans; Ruth Sprenger, a long-time supporter of Side by Side and wife of the late Dick Sprenger, a past member of the board; and special honourees Roz and Moe Wagman.
Chairman in Our Voice
February 16, 2007
2006 Group News
May 17, 2006
CITY TV News anchor Anne Mroczkowski interviewed four Man to Man survivors on Monday September 18, 2006, the first day of Prostate Cancer Awareness Week. Pictured above from left to right are: Anne, Ray St-Sauveur, Aaron Bacher, Mark Dailey (also a CITY TV anchor) and Ron Foreman.
Read more