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Celebrating 40 Years of Achievement:

Grassroots to Mountaintops

With your HELP, we can and will do MORE.

Established in 1973, by Ralph and Ariel Walker, the Huntington Society of Canada (HSC) is a national and global leader in recognizing the needs of those affected by Huntington disease (HD).

The Huntington Society of Canada offers help to Canadians affected by Huntington disease through service programs that give support to individuals and families, and hope, by funding cutting edge, internationally recognized, Huntington disease research.

HSC is the only nation-wide health charity dedicated to providing help and hope for families living with Huntington disease in Canada.

Today, the Society is active in every province, with 25 Social Workers, 11 Multidisciplinary clinics, and over 30 Chapters that engage more than 10,000 fundraising and awareness volunteers each year.

Since inception, HSC has recognized the importance of reaching out beyond our borders. As one of the four founding members of the International Huntington Association (an organization that now consists of 42 member nations, and works in close collaboration with the World Federation of Neurology Research Group on Huntington Disease), the Huntington Society is proud to remain a world leader in developing and delivering essential Huntington disease services and investing in the future of Huntington disease medicine.

Building a new chapter in this history starts now.  The Grassroots to Mountaintops campaign goal: $5 million to meet critical needs.

There is an urgent need to:

Build upon research successes to date. Research results are cumulative. Canadians have made a significant impact on Huntington disease research. We strongly believe that a Canadian researcher will unlock the key to this devastating disease.

Recruit people affected by HD and those at-risk to participate in clinical trials to test upcoming and promising new therapies. Canadians are quickly becoming the highest per capita participants in HD clinical trials in the world; however, we are not there yet.

Continue to deliver and expand essential services. This includes reaching out to HD families who are currently not receiving critical support; building a network for youth affected by and at-risk of HD; providing caregivers the support they need; identifying and filling the gaps in order to reach the maximum number of Canadians who require these essential services each day.

We cannot do it alone, but together we can! 

With the help of our strategic partners and supporters, the Huntington Society of Canada continues to be an innovator by creating opportunities across Canada. Recent achievements include: 

-  Dr. Ray Truant, PhD, McMaster University, establishes a link between Alzheimer’s disease and Huntington disease. Researchers specializing in Huntington’s and Alzheimer’s are now collaborating and sharing information that will eventually lead to significant treatments for both diseases.

-  Supporting Dr. Simonetta Sipione, PhD, Universityof Alberta, and Dr. Ray Truant, PhD, McMaster University in successfully reversing the physical symptoms of Huntington disease in a mouse.

-  Establishing the Canadian Coalition for Genetic Fairness (CCGF), Canada is the only G8 Country that does not protect its citizens against genetic discrimination. CCGF is a partnership of 16 health organizations dedicated to ensuring protection over the use of personal DNA information for all Canadians.

-  Spearheading the development of the first Huntington disease patient-centered multidisciplinary clinic in Canada. Today the Huntington Society of Canada has cultivated the development of 11 clinics of this kind.

-  Creating the first Canadian youth specific Huntington disease support network, Young People Affected By Huntington Disease (YPAHD).  Organized by youth for youth between the ages of 16 to 29, YPAHD advocates for the rights and needs of young Canadians at-risk of Huntington disease and aspires to a world free of HD.

-  Partnering with two other global HD organizations to help launch HDBuzz.net. HDBuzz is the first platform of its kind. This Huntington disease resource website is run and maintained by globally recognized HD researchers and neurologists. Prominent work in HD research is peer reviewed and then translated into everyday language. HDBuzz is leading the way in how research is communicated.