[Name of MPP]
[Address]
[Date]
Dear
I am a constituent in your riding and I am writing to ask you to lend your voice and support for an
important health issue that is impacting the delivery of health care in our community .
An estimated 1 in 10 Canadians, or more than three million people, are living with some form of liver
disease. I am a physician who has patients with liver disease in my practice and have seen firsthand the
consequences of serious liver diseases that may have few, if any, obvious symptoms until they have
wreaked permanent damage on the liver.
On April 2, 2013, the Canadian Liver Foundation released Liver Disease in Canada: A Crisis in the
Making – the first report of its kind that highlights the missed opportunities for prevention, gaps in care
and the human impact of liver disease. If you have not had a chance to see it, the following is a link to
the report. [LINK]
This report shows that over a period of only eight years, the death rate from liver disease has risen
nearly 30%. And yet, unlike other major diseases, there has been no national strategy put in place for a
public health response to liver disease. The most common forms of liver disease are all on the rise
which means that the increase in death rates from these diseases and their complications will continue
to climb if we maintain the status quo.
As a physician, I want to provide the best possible care to my patients but I often face roadblocks in the
diagnosis and treatment of liver disease. There are no government issued testing guidelines for diseases
such as hepatitis B or C nor are liver tests mandated as part of annual physicals. Once diagnosed with
liver disease, the waiting lists for specialists are long and patients face issues in accessing additional
testing or treatment depending upon where they live or their ability to pay.
When liver disease remains undiagnosed or untreated, the consequences may be liver cancer, liver
failure or even death. While liver transplants can save lives, we do not have enough donor organs for
everyone and it can cost more than $100,000 for a transplant – and that doesn’t include the
immunosuppressive drugs that are required for life.
Liver disease does not need to be a death sentence. Without a coordinated effort involving investment
and resources for prevention, screening, treatment, patient care and research however, tens of
thousands of Canadians may die needlessly of preventable or treatable liver diseases. – Dr. Morris
Sherman, lead author of Liver Disease in Canada report.
In its report, the Canadian Liver Foundation recommends the development of a national strategy with
short-term and long-term solutions to help defuse this ticking time bomb.
I urge you to talk to the Health Minister and ask that the Canadian Liver Foundation’s report be
reviewed and the recommendations acted upon for the sake of my patients whose liver health is at
stake.
Sincerely,