NEWS

Moving Research Findings into Clinical Care  By: Dr. Elizabeth Stringer The Canadian Alliance of Pediatric Rheumatology Investigators (CAPRI) is a research network made up of pediatric rheumatologists and other researchers.  Past, present, and future research will lead to discovering new information about rheumatic conditions including long-term outcomes, medication side effects,…

As part of Team Cassie + Friends last year, Jaylene and her family raised over $11,000 thanks to donations from their annual bottle drive. The 4th Annual Prime Family Bottle Drive takes place on Saturday June 6th in Langley, BC and we need your help to make this year a success! Can’t drop your bottles off…

Alison Legge is a member of the Cassie + Friends Youth Leader Committee. She spoke at Cassie + Friends Family Day 2016 as a youth champion, speaking about the impact chronic disease has had on her mental health. A lot has happened since then, and Alison has learned she is…

May is Lupus Awareness Month and we reached out to our friend, Lia who is 13 years living with lupus, a rare autoimmune disease. After being diagnosed in 2018, Lia believes everything happens for a reason and there is always a positive in all events of life. Thank you, Lia,…

May is Lupus Awareness Month and we reached out to Dr. Lori Tucker of BC Children’s Hospital to learn more about this rare autoimmune disease. Thank you, Lori for providing us with this important information. By: Dr. Lori Tucker Systemic lupus erythematosus (also known as ‘lupus’ or SLE) is a…

How have you felt seeing some of the familiar medications used to treat Juvenile Arthritis and other childhood rheumatic diseases, like Lupus, suddenly in the news? With clinical trials and major news articles now talking about treatments like Actemra and Plaquenil as potential answers to the COVID-19 pandemic, we want…

“I am hoping our daughter will be able to meet other girls her age with arthritis.” “Willing to do anything to learn more about JIA.” “We are hoping to connect with other families that have been through the hard time of arthritis and are trying to have a normal childhood…

Author: Zoya Jiwa, YLC Program Designer and founder of As We Are Style – a blog about facing health challenges with courage and style. Last weekend, Cassie + Friends’ Youth Leadership Committee got together for our first team retreat on a surprisingly sunny afternoon (thank you, Vancouver!) with a lot of excitement…

Last month, Cassie and Friends’ Juvenile Arthritis at School Puppet Show hit the road to bring juvenile arthritis education to the Okanagan! The special puppet show, which was offered free-of-charge to schools by Cassie and Friends with support from a $10,000 grant from the Telus Friendly Futures Foundation, tells the story of Cassie…

My daughter Elena was diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis at age 2. Arthritis? That was an elderly person’s disease, I thought. I had no idea the depth of the disease or what would lie ahead for us. First, she started with redness and swelling in her knees. I took her into the doctor…

For many children with JIA or other rheumatic diseases, physical challenges at school can be huge barriers, particularly when it comes to gym class. In a recent study, researchers found that 38% of kids with JIA were unable to participate in gym with their peers. Paired with misunderstanding and lack of…

What makes Family Day a life-changing experience for kids and families affected by Juvenile Arthritis and other rheumatic diseases? Here are the top 7 reasons people attend Cassie and Friends’ Family Day year after year: Knowing you are not alone.  There is simply nothing like connecting and sharing with others…