President of the CCPTC Committee and Member of the Board of Directors

Since 2019, he has been involved, as a caregiver for his wife with non-smoking lung cancer, in various committees directly related to cancer and some others. 

• Comité de coordination en cancérologie, CISSS des Laurentides
• Comité de coordination en cancérologie, CISSS des Laurentides.
• Monthly cancer operational management committee, CISSS des Laurentides.
• Comité de mise en place du guichet rapide d’investigation en cancérologie, CISSS des Laurentides.
• Comité national des personnes touchées par le cancer, CISSS des Laurentides representative on the Programme québécois en cancérologie (MSSS).
• Telehealth Committee, CISSS des Laurentides.
• Partenariat des soins et services team, CISSS des Laurentides.
• Community of practice on experience and partnership with users and their families, under the aegis of Marie-Pascale Pomey (UDM).

Patient-Partner and Member of the board of directors

Affected by breast cancer in 2018, after having participated in clinical trials herself, Catherine Wilhelmy became a full-time patient partner! First at the CHUS Research Center, where she is responsible for implementing the patient partnership, then over time, she became co-leader of Expériences, the Quebec community of patient partners of the SSA-Québec Support Unit, where she is also co-scientific director.

She also contributes to the mission of cancer-related organizations such as the Programme québécois de cancérologie, INESSS, Groupe McPeak Sirois, Fondation cancer du sein du Québec, Coalition priorité cancer au Québec, Q-CROC, Catalis, Biocan RX and the Institut de recherche en cancer de Sherbrooke.

More concretely, she also acts as a collaborator or co-investigator in eight research projects. “For me, taking an active part in research means regaining power over illness and creating meaning where it’s hard to find

Patient-Partner

Marilou joined the committee of the Coalition of People Affected by Cancer (CCPTC) because she is very sensitive to the issues affecting people affected by cancer. Affected by HPV 16 metastatic cervical cancer, Marilou understands the importance of getting involved at a strategic level to ensure that patients’ voices are heard by decision-makers, and to advance the programs and policies in place.

She is interested in the importance of information for cancer patients and access to “the best treatment for every patient”. She promotes the importance of patient access to clinical trials and new technologies, the promotion of evidence-based medicine, and the phenomenon of misinformation about cancer treatments.
She is also committed to defending the interests of patients affected by the various cancers caused by HPV.

Marilou has been invited to make her voice heard in various media in recent years (Pénélope, L’histoire derrière le prix John-Maddox du Pharmachien, December 12, 2019, La Presse, Vaccination, le temps de penser à nos malades, April 21, 2021, La Presse, Délestage de soins lors de la COVID, January 8, 2022, 98,5 émission de Bernard Drainville, Cancer et délestage au Québec, January 11, 2022).

Patient-Partner

Raymond Vles has experienced two cancers in his life, thyroid cancer in his thirties and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) diagnosed in his mid-fifties. Both cancers having been successfully treated, he is now in remission and in good health.

Retired since 2020, he is active in the healthcare field. He is Chairman of LLC Canada and facilitator of the Quebec support group for people with CLL. He is also a patient partner with the Pôle Santé des HEC.

Prior to his retirement, Mr. Vles worked for the City of Montreal in IT systems management and, before that, in organizational development. Before joining the City, he worked as a management consultant specializing in the analysis of public issues and participatory approaches for organizations in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors.

Patient-Partner

My involvement with cancer consists of accompanying people close to me. I’ve accompanied them for meetings and care in hospital, and helped them with daily activities. I’ve also been there for some of them at the end of their lives.

Patient-Partner

I worked in the world of education as a teacher and principal. When I retired in 2009, I was given the gift of a colorectal cancer diagnosis. This was a “nice” moment that I hadn’t really planned.

I was invited to join the Coalition of People Affected by Cancer Committee. For over 5 years now, I’ve been taking part in meetings, symposiums, conventions and so on, whenever possible. What a personal enrichment I try to pass on to my acquaintances and sometimes chance encounters. People are often misinformed and want to know and understand how the “patient” works!

There’s light at the end of the tunnel! I’m alive and well in 2023

Patient-Partner

All in all, my involvement in oncology is very limited. What is more important is accompanying people and those around them in the face of illness. These are the faces of people I’ve loved or been close to. Personally, I realized at a very young age that cancer could take uncles and aunts like a kidnapping. So when my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer, followed a few months later by breast cancer for myself, it was like the natural order of things. I found the announcement very distressing to receive, but that didn’t stop me from remaining sensitive to the difficult situations experienced by others. That’s why, at the request of two young men in their twenties, I’m presiding over a lighting ceremony at the funeral home for their mother, who died of lung cancer at the age of 53. So that is my cancer experience.

Partener

With a background in education (15 years as a teacher and 20 years as a manager), I’ve been involved with the Coalition des personnes touchées par le cancer for over 5 years. I started out as a caregiver for my wife, who went through all the phases of her battle with colorectal cancer.

 

I realized that this passage was often strewn with misunderstandings and questions where answers are often hard to find. Joining the committee gave me an exceptional insight and a 3D opening to this all-too-frequent reality. I acted as chairman of this committee, and this experience enabled me to meet people who are passionate about their work and the health of their patients. I still believe, even if it’s not always easy, that the small steps taken by our committee can make a big difference! Long live the CCPTC!

Patient-Partner

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Patient-Partner

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Patient-Partner

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