November 2019

Greetings!

Welcome to the PKD Foundation of Canada's November e-News! We have provided information important to helping you take action in your journey with PKD.

Awareness

December 3rd 2019 is Giving Tuesday!

Here are a few ways for you to show your support to the PKD Foundation of Canada this #GivingTuesday!

1) Show us your best #UNselfie in 3 simple steps:

• Download one of our #UNselfie templates here and here.
• Email us your photo here.
• Share your #UNselfie on social media and tell your audience why you support the PKD community and the PKD Foundation of Canada!

2) Donate to help END PKD: Your donation, no matter the size, will make a difference in the lives of 12.5 million people worldwide living with PKD. Donate today to support vital PKD research, education, advocacy and awareness here in Canada.

Make sure to tag us on Facebook and Twitter using @endPKD and on Instagram using @endpkd.ca.

DONATE TODAY!

   Help People SEE ADPKD: Share Your Story Today!

SHARE YOUR STORY!

Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is one of the world's most common, life-threatening genetic diseases. Your stories can help people paint a more powerful picture of PKD and the lives it affects.

Help give a voice to a widely unknown disease by sharing your story here.

You can read some of our Voices of PKD here!

Support

Michael's PKD Journey: From Uncertainty to Self-Advocacy

"Michael Coyle was a new Search-and-Rescue (SAR) recruit in British Columbia two decades ago when his blood pressure showed up abnormally high during training. As it turned out, it was the beginning of the road to a diagnosis that would change his life.

Michael, now 49 and still working with Coquitlam SAR, remembers that day like it was yesterday. “I was feeling perfectly healthy,” he recalls. “I was in good shape. I rode my bike everywhere. I was a vegetarian. I remember thinking, 'How could something be wrong with me?' But I also remember the nurse looking at me very sternly and telling me I needed to see a doctor right away.”

Read the full article here.

 Support the PKD Foundation of Canada by Leaving a Future Gift

Legacy Gift

Your legacy gift will enable the PKD Foundation of Canada to create a powerful philanthropic legacy by making a direct impact on the advancement of critical Canadian research. If you have not had the ability to make a major gift during your lifetime, legacy giving can be meaningful source of funding from you.

A legacy gift is a gift by Will with lasting meaning and is the simplest way to create a legacy of everlasting hope. It is a future gift that will not cost anything during your lifetime, with no extra out-of-pocket costs and your income will not decrease.

You can learn more about planned giving by clicking here.

Wills and Bequests

Make a future gift of lasting support by remembering the PKD Foundation of Canada (PKDFOC) in your Will. A Bequest in your Will may be the biggest gift of your life, and has the power to change the lives of all affected by PKD for better. Help even more PKD patients look forward to a future of full recovery.

This gift will not cost you anything during your lifetime, with no extra out-of-pocket costs and your income will not decrease. One of the benefits of making a Bequest is that your estate obtains a charitable tax receipt for the full amount received. Also, if stocks or real estate you left have appreciated in value, your gift may be exempt from capital gains.

You can learn more about bequests by clicking here.

Learn

Webinar "Treating Polycystic Kidney Disease: Could Diet Be The Key?"

When:

December 10, 2019

from 8:00PM - 9:00PM EST

Dr. Thomas Weimbs, University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB), and his research team have discovered that diets that induce ketosis in mouse, rat and cat models slowed or reversed the growth of polycystic kidneys. Could this research be the key to slowing down the progression of PKD in humans? Join us as Thomas Weimbs, Ph.D. discusses his research.

Neera Dahl, M.D., Ph.D., Yale University School of Medicine, will also join us to provide a physician’s perspective on this new research. She will review the current consensus for best dietary approaches in ADPKD, and discuss the new findings in the context of best dietary strategies for patients.

REGISTER TODAY!

University Health Network's 2019 Toronto PKD Scientific Conference

On Saturday, September 7th 2019, Dr. York Pei, Professor of Medicine and staff nephrologist at Toronto General Hospital hosted his annual UHN PKD Conference in Toronto, ON. During this conference, attendees were educated on the following:  
- Clinical features and pathobiology of ADPKD;
- Updates on recent advances in PKD translational research;
- How advances in diagnostic and therapeutic may impact clinical practice;
- Expert discussion of a challenging clinical case.

Watch recordings from the conference here.

PKD Health Note: Stressed? 10 Ways to Protect Your Kidneys

The holiday season can bring on a lot of stress for many of us. It’s important to know how stress can impact your kidneys, and how you can help to reduce it.

Check out this great article from the National Kidney Foundation for information on 10 ways to protect your kidneys.

Read the full article here.

ReferPKD Tool Now Available Nationwide on endPKD.ca

The PKD Foundation of Canada is proud to continue supporting uKidney's ReferPKD tool, which is now accessible nationwide on our website here.

This tool will help you connect your general practitioner to physicians or clinics with a stated interest in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. Your GP can then visit ReferPKD.com and have the option to refer directly to the physician with a well-informed referral, complete with all the information needed to plan a referral and omitting what isn't required.

Please note: At this time, endpkd.ca/referPKD and referPKD.com only list Canadian physicians or clinics with a stated interest in ADPKD.