Help Noor Fight Cancer

Change.org petition with CTV news coverage:  https://chng.it/MzynbwwNxW

Noor, a 25-year-old female with a 1 and half year old daughter is currently suffering from a rare kind of cancer which is incurable. The chemotherapy is not working and the tumor is growing but there is some hope with a drug called Pemigatinib. Currently, approval of this drug in Quebec province is moving forward, however, this drug is not funded in Ontario and we are advocating to raise awareness so that this drug can be funded in Ontario.

Noor and her husband do not have a drug plan through work, and cannot afford Pemigatinib. This medication was recommended by Noors’ oncologist and the director of cancer research from Ottawa’s Hospital Research Institute. This drug is well tolerated and will hopefully control her disease better than any other treatment. Noor has already had to face a terrible diagnosis, but this drug offers some hope that she can have more time with her baby daughter and husband.

We are seeking for your help so that Noor can afford this drug and start using this drug as soon as possible, while we are working with the Ontario government to fund this drug province wide. If you are unable to help financially, please think of Noor in your prayers and share this to your friends and family to raise awareness.

Pemigatinib cost

1 tablet (13.5 mg) US$830.30 per tablet, average 28-day supply US$15,499

6-month supply: US$15,499 x 6 months

: US$92,994

: CA$127,740

We humbly request that you take a few minutes of your time to read her story:

Noor was excitedly pregnant in September 2022 when she presented to the emergency room at Grand River Hospital with some pain in her abdomen. She was worried the pain might signal a problem with her pregnancy.

An ultrasound done in the emergency room showed multiple liver lesions. A subsequent biopsy in early October of 2022 confirmed that these liver lesions were actually metastatic tumors from a primary cholangiocarcinoma. Cholangiocarcinoma is a cancer of the bile ducts, and because of the multiple liver tumors, was considered incurable. There would be no chance for surgery to cure her of this cancer. She is the youngest person, to date, that the oncologist has met with this type of cancer.

In October 2022, the oncologist relayed the devastating news to her and her husband. Her main concern was to deliver a healthy baby, but in the setting of multiple liver metastases the doctor needed to start palliative chemotherapy. They chose a chemotherapy regimen that was considered safe during pregnancy, and she delivered her baby successfully in February 2023.

After delivery she started on standard first line chemotherapy for her cancer, consisting of chemotherapy drugs called cisplatin and gemcitabine, and an immunotherapy medication called durvalumab. She responded well initially, but now her cancer is growing.

She had testing of her biopsy sample that has shown an FGFR2 fusion, a type of mutation. There exists a relatively new, Health Canada approved drug that targets FGFR2 fusion positive cholangiocarcinomas, called Pemigatinib. Pemigatinib is a pill, and is standard of care second line treatment for patients with cholangiocarcinoma that harbor an FGFR2 fusion in the cancer cells. Although the drug will not cure her cancer, it has been shown to extend survival for almost 2 years as compared to 6 months for standard chemotherapy. Approval of this drug in Quebec is moving forward. Unfortunately, there is no approval for this drug in Ontario.