Get Involved
There are so many ways you can help make a difference in the lives of patients and families today.
Care & Support
Find connections and lean on others who have experienced the diagnosis of a brain tumour.
Pediatric & Family Support
Support and information services
Support services and resources are available for children and families, including:
- Pediatric Brain Tumour Handbook
- A Friend in Hope Storybook
- BrainWAVE Program: a support program for families with a child 19 years of age or younger affected by a brain tumour. (See details below.)
- SUPERKIDS: an educational program that helps teachers and parents teach kids and teens about brain tumours and how the brain works, while promoting awareness, empathy, kindness and understanding.
- Closed Facebook Support Group specific to the pediatric brain tumour journey
- Talking to your child: Initiating a conversation to disclose your brain tumour diagnosis (A parent, guardian and caregiver’s guide)
- Youth Education Awards for post-secondary students
- Toll-free information and support line
- Other support tools and information:
BrainWAVE Program
Fun and support for families on the journey with a pediatric brain tumour
BrainWAVE is a support program for families with a child (19 years of age or younger) with a brain tumour. The program offers you and your child/teen the opportunity to connect with other families in a similar situation and to obtain much-needed support, information and education.
BrainWAVE families have the opportunity to meet and relax through fun activities such as trips to sports events, historical sites and other family attractions. These free events offer a welcome respite from treatments and doctors’ visits for all members of the immediate family.
All activities are planned and organized by volunteers on the BrainWAVE Committees in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Alberta (alternating between Calgary and Edmonton), Southwestern Ontario, and Quebec, as BrainWAVE/GOcervo!
Sibling Support Project
Brain tumours affect the whole family. For siblings of children with brain tumours, it can be a very trying and emotional experience. The Sibling Support Project was created by five McGill nursing students to help kids make sense of their feelings and of their sibling’s diagnosis.
Learn more
Pediatric Brain Tumour Handbook
A child’s brain tumour diagnosis can leave parents feeling helpless and full of questions. The Pediatric Brain Tumour Handbook is a thorough and easy-to-read resource for parents and caregivers of children affected by brain tumours. The handbook is broken up in sections that cover all aspects of your child’s brain tumour journey, from diagnosis and symptoms, through treatment and navigating the health care system.
Order your copy
A Friend in Hope storybook
This children’s storybook follows the journey of Hope, a childhood brain tumour patient, as seen through the eyes of her friend Danny. It’s a beautifully-illustrated tale that explains the brain tumour experience for children in a way that is engaging and easy to understand.
Order your copy
Talking to your child: A conversation guide
When a parent, guardian or caregiver is diagnosed with a brain tumour, it can impact the entire family. Talking to a child about your diagnosis can be challenging, and it is completely normal to feel stress or anxiety about having these conversations. We hope this guide will support you every step of the way in communicating your diagnosis to your child.
Download the guideDavid Bloom’s legacy – BrainWAVE
When David Bloom received an 18-month prognosis following his brain tumour diagnosis, little did he know his name would live on as a champion of young brain tumour patients and their families.
After taking part in the Toronto Brain Tumour Walk in 2000, David decided to bring the event to his hometown of Brampton. Sadly, he passed just 10 days before the walk took place at age 19.
However, his legacy of bringing comfort to children facing a brain tumour was set.
The David Bloom Legacy Fund, has been making a difference in the lives of children battling brain tumours ever since.
Funding for the legacy fund comes from the Brampton Brain Tumour Walk – an event that Bloom was instrumental in starting. The David Bloom Legacy Fund is a major contributor to Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada’s BrainWAVE program, which offers pediatric brain tumour patients and their families a chance to have some fun and forget the routine of hospitals and treatments for a day.
Today the Blooms say their greatest achievement is keeping David’s memory alive with the annual walk, a scholarship at his high school, and an amateur theatre award in his name. And of course, the BrainWAVE program is a big part of that as well.
It’s a meaningful way to not only provide a fun outing for young brain tumour patients, but an opportunity for people walking the same difficult road to meet one another and forge new relationships.
Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada is honoured to be a part of David Bloom’s legacy.
Thank you to the following organizations for your financial support of BrainWAVE!
David Bloom Legacy Fund
Lutheran Social Services (London)
The Northey Family Endowment Fund
