January 2026 Newsletter

Welcome to the January AYA CAN Newsletter!

✨ Happy New Year! We hope you had a restful holiday season and are ready to jump into 2026.

This month, we’re kicking things off with a focus on fresh starts, new goals, and all the exciting things we have planned for the year ahead. Dive in!

Be sure to continue sending us your updates to include in the newsletter! _______________________________________________________

Here are 10 things you can do to support AYA’s today:

1. AYA Can 

  1. Community Call – We are planning our next Community Call for January 16 at 2pm EST.
  2. We’re thrilled to welcome Don Wood to the AYA Can Board! His wealth of experience and commitment to the AYA community will help strengthen our impact in the year ahead.

2. Transition from pediatric to adult care for childhood cancer survivor

In collaboration with young survivors and supported by organizations like Leucan, we have developed a series of short, impactful videos that share real-life experiences and advice from survivors navigating this critical, yet often overlooked, phase of care. Here’s the link for the four videos of the series:

Spreading Your Wings : What does the transition from pediatrics to adult care mean ?

Spreading Your Wings : What are the differences between pediatric care and adult care ?

Spreading Your Wings : Why is it important to know your health history?

Spreading Your Wings : How to better prepare for the transition to adult care after cancer?

These videos are designed to foster awareness, support and a sense of community as transitioning into adult care can leave survivors feeling unprepared, isolated, and overwhelmed. Our videos are in French but contain English subtitles. We believe that such a fact will give the opportunity to have more bilingual resources for the population in need all around Canada.

3. Recruiting (see poster)

Researchers at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre are looking for patient partners ages 18-25 who were diagnosed between the ages of 13-18 or transitioned to adult care while receiving active treatment. Partners will be engaged to support a project aimed at improving the transition to adult care for adolescents. Partners will be compensated for their time and will be a key voice in shaping the direction and outcome of the project.

4. We are excited to share that we are continuing to offer our 12-week yoga intervention for young adults affected by cancer. We are currently RECRUITING participants for our Winter 2026 session. (see poster)

WHAT: 12-week yoga program with classes 2 times/week, delivered via Zoom. Participants can expect a gentle yoga class instructed by trained yoga professionals, that can be modified to all abilities. As part of the study, participants will also complete physical assessments via Zoom, online questionnaires, and an interview at pre-specified time points.

WHO: Any young adult affected by cancer who:

  • Has been diagnosed with any cancer between the ages of 18-39 years
  • Is currently at any stage of cancer experience (i.e., on- or off-treatment)
  • Is able to safely engage in yoga, as assessed by completing the Get Active Questionnaire, and obtaining medical clearance (if indicated in the Get Active Questionnaire)
  • Is willing and able to complete informed consent, questionnaires, physical assessments, and an interview in English

WHEN: Classes will be Mondays @ 2-3PM MST and Wednesdays @ 5-6PM MST. Classes will run Monday, January 12 – Wednesday, April 8 (no class on Monday, February 16 & Monday, April 6). For more information, interested participants can email us at wellnesslab@ucalgary.ca and a member of our study team will be in touch with you.

5. Gilda’s Toronto (see additional posters 1 & 2)

  • Winter Support Groups will start the week of January 19, 2026. We are now welcoming referrals for children, youth, and adult support groups. Please see the flyers for specific group details. To access Gilda’s support groups, please complete our membership form here: Become a Member – Gilda’s Toronto
  • Talking to Children and Teens About Cancer- A Free Education Session (virtual) hosted by Gilda’s on Wednesday, January 21, 2026, at 1 PM. Please see the flyer for registration and event details.
  • Bladder Cancer 101: In partnership with Bladder Cancer Canada, Theresa Blondin will be facilitating a free (virtual) Education Session with Gilda’s Toronto on Wednesday, January 28th at 1 PM.
  • Chef Geremy Capone (ELLICSR Kitchen), Registered Dietitian Daniela Fierini (ELLICSR Kitchen) and Guest Chef Amy Symington (Gilda’s Toronto), will be co-hosting Community Connections.
      • When: Thursday, February 19, 2026, 12 PM- 1 PM
      • Where:  ELLICSR: Health, Wellness & Cancer Survivorship Centre, Toronto General Hospital, Basement level, B PMB 130. The class can also be viewed virtually at www.YouTube.com/ellicsrkitchen. This is a free event, supported by the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation, and is open to anyone. No registration is necessary. Call 416-581-8620 or email ellicsr@uhn.ca for more information.

6. CIHR: Beyond Treatment: Advancing Cancer Survivorship Team Grants

Are you looking for researchers from other disciplines, persons with lived and/or living experience, knowledge users, or resources to support your team for the Beyond Treatment: Advancing Cancer Survivorship Team Grants? Add your information to the Partner Linkage Tool for this funding opportunity: https://lnkd.in/gq9cqbSu

7. ACCESS

We are looking for 30 children in Canada ages 8 to 14 years who have been affected by childhood cancer (e.g., patients, survivors, siblings, cousins, friends, classmates) to test our survey that will allow us to better understand how children want to learn about cancer.

Please consider sharing this opportunity with relevant children in your communities, school groups or support networks.

To participate, children can complete the following survey.

If you or a child you know would like more information about this research, please contact Ekaterini Damoulianos (ekaterini.damoulianos@mail.mcgill.ca).

8. CCRAN’S executive summary from their Patient Survey (see summary)

9. Pink Pearl is hosting an overnight retreat this January! (see poster)

10. The On the Tip of the Toes Foundation is ready to launch the participant selection for the 2026 Winter Grand Expedition! Feel free to share this information within your networks and speak about the project to the young people you work with!

Here are the basic details:

Attached, you will find (in French and in English):

  • Detailed selection criteria
  • A promotional poster to print and display in your establishment

To refer a participant:

There are several options! With the person’s consent, you can either:

After speaking directly to the candidates, we will proceed with the official registrations. A few weeks before the trip, we will ask your collaboration to complete a medical form that needs to be signed by the participant’s physician.

Feel free to reach out to us for any reason. We will be happy to answer your questions, hear your comments, or get to know you better over the phone.

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If you have anything you’d like us to let the AYA CAN community know about, please send it to us and we will include it in our next newsletter.

Thank you for reading!