I graduated from the University of British Columbia in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, with a focus in Genetics and Evolution. Shortly after graduating and working in a laboratory, I came to the realization I can make a bigger impact in healthcare and biotechnology by leveraging my scientific expertise to [...]
Meet Lily. One morning, at the young age of 2, our daughter Lily woke up limping and her left knee looked slightly swollen. She didn't seem to show that she was in pain, but was refraining from putting weight on her left leg. We had no idea what happened and didn't recall any [...]
National Pediatric Rheumatology Mental Health Workgroup Cassie + Friends has led the formation of a new workgroup on Pediatric Rheumatology Mental Health to improve mental health care and outcomes for children with rheumatologic diseases. The goal of this Mental Health Workgroup is to develop strategies to improve research, care, and outcomes about mental [...]
"Working out and going to the gym helped me regain my physical ability but also my confidence, energy and overall mental wellbeing." - Ryan Dekker, Young Adult Living with JA As someone who grew up with an active lifestyle (and plenty of energy), finding a way to stay active [...]
"I soon began to experience extreme pain in my wrists, which would cause challenges for me whenever I would be at school or would work on school assignments." My name is Jessica Gill. I am from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I was diagnosed with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis at the age of eight years old [...]
Meet Harley. In December 2022, after four long months of doctor’s appointments, seeing different specialists, testing and bloodwork, our sweet Harley was diagnosed with polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis, with 34 affected joints. She was just a few weeks shy of turning 2.5 years old. This diagnosis came after several months of watching our [...]
"Throughout all of these experiences that I have had with Cassie + Friends, there is one throughline: Understanding. Understanding is a concept not to be underestimated." Meet Ciara. It was after after my body couldn’t row anymore, my hands couldn’t hold the pencil, my joints ached in pain, and after my diagnosis of [...]
"Explaining this to fellow highschoolers was difficult, often times just resulting in being the butt of the joke. It was hard finding someone who understood and could relate." Meet Ryan. I first started noticing symptoms as early as age 12. At that time, many just advised me that I was going through some growing [...]
Cassie + Friends is leading the formation of a new workgroup on Pediatric Rheumatology Mental Health to improve mental health care and outcomes for children with rheumatologic diseases. The workgroup will be led by: Dr. Andrea Knight, Pediatric Rheumatologist, The Hospital for Sick Children + Canada Research Chair in Mental Health and Chronic Disease [...]
All of these biologic changes are stressful and confusing! Over the past year, the landscape of biologic treatments available, and coverage for these treatments for children with JIA and other rheumatic diseases has changed. The biggest changes have been a shift to coverage of biosimilar treatments in many provinces, biologic shortages, and phasing out [...]
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