Faith drives cancer fundraising

Sarcoma Research Canada is continuing its work toward honouring the memory of children and adults lost to osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma and related bone cancers while advancing research, awareness and support for affected families.

With an October fundraising dinner planned to further that mission, its founder is inviting the community to join in turning compassion into concrete hope for young patients facing these rare and aggressive diseases.

The foundation’s roots reach back to a profound personal loss. Carmela Ricco Caravaggio, founder and CEO, founded the organization after the loss of a family member following a diagnosis of osteosarcoma, the same form of bone cancer that claimed Canadian icon Terry Fox. 

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Through both school and community awareness efforts across the country, carefully directed research grants and ongoing personal support for families, Sarcoma Research Canada has invested in its mission to improve outcomes. 

A practising Catholic and member of Toronto’s St. Fidelis Parish, Caravaggio spoke to how her strong faith has assisted in sustaining the foundation and its work amidst emotional and difficult times. 

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“ I couldn't do this by myself, and the person who gives me the faith and the strength and the encouragement to continue is the Blessed Mary. It’s my faith in God, my creator, that pushes me every day to contact people, write letters, try to get donations and work on new events. It's the Blessed Mary who gives me the strength, opportunity and encouragement to continue every day,” she told The Catholic Register. 

Through that often-unseen guidance, Sarcoma Research Canada has managed to produce impressive results for a relatively new and small foundation. The team had donated to a Benevolent Fund that supported six families with financial assistance toward the cost of their child's funeral expenses in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta. The foundation also donated more than $89,000 to Sarcoma Cancer Foundation Canada in 2021.

Since 2023, major funding grants have been provided, first to Dr. Rebecca Deyell of the B.C. Children's Hospital, who was awarded $100,000 for to study the impact of body composition and pharmacogenomics on toxicity and survival outcomes in childhood bone sarcoma, and most recently to Mathieu Quesnel-Vallières of the Université de Sherbrooke for engineering transcriptomics-informed personalized vaccines for childhood sarcoma. 

The next gala, a ladies' night known as “Prosecco and Pearls”, will take place Oct. 15 at Vaughan’s Venetian Banquet Hall. 

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“These raised funds will create hope and opportunities for children facing these cancers. It's more than a donation, but an investment we’re making in research. If you don't invest in research, you can't invest in anything,” she said. 

See https://sarcomaresearchcanada.org/. 

A version of this article appeared in the September 06, 2026 issue of The Catholic Register with the headline "Faith drives cancer fundraising"