Calgary scrapbookers raise money to fight blood cancers
When the dedicated scrapbookers gather at the Paper and Ink Boutique in southeast Calgary, it’s not always to share tips and preserve memories – they also use the sessions to raise money to fight cancer. It happens at regular scrapbooking gatherings called “crops.” “Because we crop our paper down to put in our scrapbooks,” store owner Julia Chupik said. Each month, Chupik organizes a cancer-related event called Crop for a Cause.
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The sessions raise money to fight blood cancers, going to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada. “I chose that one because I’m a cancer survivor,” Chupik said. “I was diagnosed seven years ago this month with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.” Fighting it involved several months of treatment. “Five rounds of chemo,” Chupik said. “And then 20 rounds of radiation.”
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Through it all, she found solace in scrapbooking. “Writing down all these thoughts and emotions,” Chupik said. “Because there was a lot of anxiety.” Cancer has also been part of many people’s lives who attend Chupik’s Crop for a Cause event. “I just had my dad pass away a year ago with lung cancer,” Kim Sirr said. “And I will be here at any time I can.”
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The scrapbookers hope their monthly sessions throughout 2019 will help raise about $2,000 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. All group members are encouraged that their contributions can help make a difference for people fighting the disease. “I’ve been cancer-free for five years,” Chupik said. She’s grateful for the steady support from her scrapbookers. “I’m so proud that everyone feels so passionately about it.” Unfortunately, many people get cancer each year and must deal with these illnesses. One type of cancer is blood cancer. Many people wonder what some of the blood cancer types people become sick with. Find out what some of the blood cancer types are.
One of the first common types of blood cancer is Leukemia. There are various types of Leukemia, but all of them hurt your ability to produce healthy white blood cells. This, unfortunately, targets parts of your body that help you form your blood. Because people with Leukemia lack white blood cells, typically, the complications come from an inability to fight infection versus cancer itself. Unfortunately, this is one of the more common cancers in children.
Lymphoma is another type of cancer that people get. This is a cancer of the lymph system, sometimes called Hodgkin’s lymphoma or Hodgkin’s disease. What happens is that the cells within the lymphatic system start not to form correctly. Eventually, fighting infections is difficult, making the person very sick. There are also forms of lymphoma called non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which affects the whole blood cells instead.
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