MONTREAL – Matthew Schreindorfer, the 25-year-old Laval man who crowdfunded his way to New York for experimental cancer treatment, went to Quebec City to lobby the provincial government for better access to cancer treatment.
Schreindorfer and his wife, Katia Luciani, were invited by their MNA, Jean Habel of Saint-Rose in Laval, to sit in on the National Assembly’s question period.
“It was great, and I was very much impressed,” said Luciani.
READ MORE: ‘We had been waiting for so long’: Matthew Schreindorfer talks cancer, crowdfunding and his future
It’s the second time Habel brought up Schreindorfer’s case in the National Assembly.
“He’s a great person. I was definitely surprised that he had taken my story to heart, but really glad he did,” Schreindorfer told Global News.
Schreindorfer was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) earlier this year.
Treatment failed in Quebec, so the couple turned to a clinical trial in New York City.
It saved his life.
“It’s Kat and I’s mission to push in any way that we can to bring the treatment to Montreal, and having someone use my story as an example at the National Assembly is definitely a good start,” he said.
The young couple met with Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard to discuss the importance of better access to cancer treatment.
“He mostly was asking questions about my health, so I did most of the talking,” he laughed.
“They need to invest in the treatment and bring it here. Immunotherapy is all I hear about in the cancer world.”
“It’s the breakthrough discovery in cancer research of the century, and will most probably be the treatment in the future.”
Then, Schreindorfer got down to business with Habel.
“It’s sad, but a reality.”
Schreindorfer talked about the difficulties he faced getting access to the treatments he needed, and the amazing campaign Luciani started to save her husband’s life.
READ MORE: Crowdfunding completely pays off Matthew Schreindorfer’s hospital bills
“It was disappointing that the government didn’t provide me with any assistance whatsoever,” he told Global News.
“If I wouldn’t have gone to the States for the trial, who knows how long I would have been on palliative chemotherapy and in hospital.”
Schreindorfer touched on the budget cuts, and the possible burden they could cause to the healthcare system, and in particular, for cancer patients.
READ MORE: A year after devastating diagnosis, Laval’s Matthew Schreindorfer free of cancer
“I know that healthcare is taking a big bite out of the budgets, especially with the aging population,” he said.
“But it’s definitely an investment that could save money in the medium-long term by not having patients have to go through many many rounds of chemotherapy.”
rachel.lau@globalnews.ca
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