About

Imagine visiting your local emergency room with unusual fatigue and an injured muscle only to hear the dreaded words, ‘You’ve got cancer.’  The hospital did not explore the root cause, nor did your family doctor so you weren’t any more concerned than they were until your blood vessels started bursting. If that isn’t enough, you learn that you must start treatment immediately or face imminent death.  As an unfortunate recipient of acute blood cancer, we do not often have the luxury of exploring treatment options or getting a second opinion.  It is a race against time, and there’s no time but the present. 

Canadian Cancer Society predicts that about 1 in 2 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lifetime.  When we get the news, the best way to ensure the most favorable outcome is to be informed, participate in our own health care, and hold accountable everyone else who has committed to do the same. 

As a financial services professional with more than 20 years of experience specializing in relationship management and business optimization, Michelle received an abrupt interruption to her career when she was diagnosed with Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia in December 2017. She has since made it her life’s purpose to make a meaningful positive impact in the Canadian healthcare ecosystem and to encourage Canadians to self-advocate on their own healthcare journeys. Beyond sharing her experiences and important information about navigating the healthcare system through her blog, she is now a dedicated healthcare advocate and advisor working on redefining the patient experience across Canada and beyond. She does so by:

Michelle lives in Georgetown, Ontario, Canada, with her husband and two beautiful daughters. 

Advocacy Efforts

Michelle participates in various activities to help raise awareness of the needs of Canadian patients, including but not limited to cancer patients, organ transplantation patients and those with autoimmune disorders. Below are some links to campaigns and media events that Michelle has been involved with since she became a patient in 2017.

October 2024

It seems that ‘patient voice’ is a bit of a buzz term lately but how are patient voices really being integrated into healthcare decisions. Check out this article released by 20Sense Report, “Not Just Lip Service: Integrating the Patient Voice into Healthcare Decisions”. Read the article here.

September 2024

In July 2024, it came to Michelle Burleigh’s attention that the Public Health Agency of Canada had placed pending orders for the COVID-19 vaccines offered via Pfizer and Moderna for the 2024 respiratory season but not for the protein-based option offered by Novavax. Along with a group of concerned advocates and patient organizations, the team conducted a letter-writing campaign to provincial and federal officials urging them to procure the protein-based option. Below are several articles and news stories published and aired thanks to the hard work of the team:

March 2024

Michelle sat down with Sabrina Hanna, Chief Change Officer of The Cancer Collaborative, to discuss her experience as a woman diagnosed with cancer in Canada, and some of the key areas of focus she would like to see to improve women’s experiences in healthcare. Click here to watch.

March 2023

Michelle had the great honour of speaking on behalf of the cancer and immunocompromised communities at the annual Canadian Cancer Survivors Network at Queen’s Park on Monday April 24th, 2023. The meeting kicked off with Jackie Manthorne, the President and CEO of CCSN, followed up by advocates Christine Carr, Michelle Burleigh and Shira Farbar. The meeting wrapped with a report on the importance of early screening for breast cancer by Dr. Martin Yaffe. Click here for the full report and the attending list of caucus members.

March 2023

Michelle shares her thoughts with CBC News Windsor about the three-year ‘anniversary’ of Covid-19 and what it still means for immunocompromised people. Click here to read the article.

December 2022

Michelle partners with Canadian Cancer Society for their Holiday Campaign by sharing her story with Global’s The Morning Show. Big thanks to The Morning Show for promoting “The Road to Courageous Living” in the piece. Click here to watch.

September 2022

The Globe and Mail, and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada team up to raise awareness of the challenges those facing blood cancer contend with for Blood Cancer Awareness month. Click here to read Michelle’s story of parenting through cancer.

September 2022

Michelle sits down with Healthing.ca to share her ‘Just in Time’ story. “I was just so desperate to hold onto life”. Click here to read the story.

September 2022

Michelle shares her thoughts with CBC News about the ongoing struggles of the immunocompromised community, and their increasing fear due to Covid-19 mandates, in some cases their only defence, being lifted across the country. Click here to read more.

April 2022

Michelle joins The Morning Show on Global to discuss her devasting diagnosis and her focus on non-negotiable milestones that helped her cope through her treatment and beyond. Click here to watch the interview.

February 2022

CBC’s Heather Kitching checks in with the immunocompromised community to see how they are coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, including Michelle Burleigh and Sarah Bell, the co-admins of the Facebook group ‘Immunocompromised People Are Not Expendable’. Click here to listen to the interview.

January 2022

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada has published a story written by Michelle on what cancer taught her. Click here to read the article.

December 2021

Michelle partnered with the Canadian Cancer Society and Global News to share her story and educate people about the importance of cancer research. Click here to view the story.

June 2020

Soar Above Cancer is a podcast dedicated to all things cancer. Michelle had the opportunity to virtually sit down with Gabrielle Fecteau and Alex Mandarino to discuss her cancer journey and what she has learned along the way. Click <a href=”http://here for Part 1 of the interview. Click <a href=”http://here for Part 2 of the interview.

June 2019

In June 2019, Michelle had the great honour of attending the annual Canadian CML Network Conference and award ceremony to present an award to Dr. Brian Leber.

January 2019

Cure Canada is an oncology magazine both in Canada and the United States that focuses on cancer care, wellness, and survivor stories. In January 2019, they published an article written by Michelle called, ‘Finding Strength in Family.’ Click here to read the article.

January 2019

A clip from the Our Sisters in Pink PJ Fundraiser benefitting the Canadian Assistance Services of Halton Hills and Princess Margaret Hospital. This was a special event for Michelle as CAShh provided significant support during her own IV treatment.

December 2018

Coping with Cancer is an oncology magazine in the United States that publishes articles about cancer care, wellness, and survivor stories. In December 2018, they published a story written by Michelle called, ‘Am I Lucky?’. Click here to see the article.

November 2018

A clip from the Canadian Cancer Society’s Awards of Excellence in Cancer Research held in Toronto. On the 25th anniversary of this ceremony, the Canadian Cancer Society invited a patient to speak for the first time.

April 2018

For Daffodil month, CHCH news interviewed Michelle Burleigh, Dr. Brian Leber, and Dr. Mick Batia for a look at some of the research being done at McMaster University and how it is impacting patient outcomes. Click here to see the interview.