Stories from around the world

Patient Story: Carmen from the Philippines

In 2011, Carmen developed a fever that lasted for weeks and began losing weight rapidly. After multiple doctors, tests, and misdiagnoses, she finally discovered she had chronic myeloid leukemia. Carmen feared her life was over. She even went so far as to sew her own funeral dress. Eventually, Carmen learned that her cancer could be managed through oral treatment, but the costs were prohibitive. Luckily her physician was a Max Foundation partner. She was able to enroll in our access program for imatinib at no cost, and all seemed well for a few years—until, that is, she stopped responding to her initial treatment.

Critical Partnerships are Saving Lives Globally

All of us at The Max Foundation are wholly committed to maximizing every opportunity to collaborate and build new partnerships on behalf of the patients we serve in low resource settings. We are excited to move onward to a new chapter with innovative opportunities to expand our impact. We hope you will see a place for yourself to join us in this effort to close the cancer divide!

Keeping Our Cool: Developing a Cold-Chain to Further Treatment Access

A “cold-chain” product must remain within a specific temperature range at all times. On days- or weeks-long international shipments, it’s especially challenging (and expensive) to keep medicine at a constant temperature. Despite the inherent challenges, adding cold-chain capability is well worth the effort for the patients we support. By doing so, The Max Foundation will be able to better meet the needs of patients who are unresponsive to tablet therapies.

Becoming a Mother While Facing Cancer

Having a baby is a major decision, especially for Thao from Vietnam, a cancer patient who had to pause her treatment in order to have a safe pregnancy. Thao shares how she found support through her patient group, her family, and The Max Foundation.

Empowering Patients & Physicians Through Access

Dr. Quessar and Naima are a shining example of how a treatment access program, a dedicated physician, and a determined patient can not only extend their life, but continue living it with dignity and with hope.

The Max Foundation Joins Poptivism

The Max Foundation is joining Poptivism — a consumer-driven charitable giving program that sells unique PopSocket Grips and donates 50% of the sales of those PopGrips to support a nonprofit’s mission (that’s us!). Please consider purchasing one of our Poptivism PopGrips today! With each purchase, you’ll help expand access to lifesaving cancer treatment the world over.

The Max Schooling Project: Empowering Patients and Families through Continuing Education

Launched in 2014, The Max Schooling Project (“Projek Sambung Sekolah” in Malay) enables the children of cancer patients to continue their educations and graduate from Form Five – the equivalent of high school in Malaysia.

Interview with Pat Garcia-Gonzalez with GlobalWA

For World Cancer Day, GlobalWA interviewed Max CEO Pat Garcia-Gonzalez to hear about the many lessons she has learned in this work, and how both cancer treatment and patients’ access to treatment globally has changed.

7 Questions for Dr. Jayasree Iyer of Access to Medicine Foundation

Dr. Jayasree Iyer, Executive Director of the Access to Medicine Foundation (ATMF), sits down with The Max Foundation and answers seven questions about the Access to Medicine Index, emerging trends in treatment access, and the role of collaborative access initiatives in treating chronic diseases.

Leading the Way in Drug Quality and Patient Safety

The Max Foundation leads the way in developing systems to ensure adverse event reports are shared promptly with local health authorities through prescribers, and with drug manufacturers alike.

The Mother Teresa of Uzbekistan

At The Max Foundation, I am reminded every day of the critical role our physician partners play in saving the lives of thousands of cancer patients worldwide. Dr. Kazakbaeva from Uzbekistan is a shining example of a physician who goes above and beyond for people facing cancer.

October 19th is Max’s Day

October 19th is Max’s Day. We honor the day because it marks Max’s birthday. At the very same time, we honor all the people who have been helped in his name.