Saskatchewan lung health research gets $1-million boost

Two of Saskatchewan’s top health research funding organizations are teaming up to try and improve respiratory health.

The Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation (SHRF) and the Lung Association, Saskatchewan announced Thursday they’d be making a $1-million investment over the next five years to improve respiratory health research in the province.

“It gives people hope that they can improve the lives of not only themselves, but their kids and future generations,”  SHRF CEO Patrick Odnokon said about the funding provided by donors.

The funding is earmarked for health research in Indigenous people’s health, cannabis, sleep apnea and respiratory disease control and management.

“They’re important dollars because they’re from people who care about the cause and they want to see a better future,” Odnokon said.

Jennalee Brewer was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when she was three months old and received a double lung transplant two years ago.

She thinks there is no way she would able to stand and speak at Thursday’s announcement if it were not for the decades of research poured into cystic fibrosis.

“I believe my journey with cystic fibrosis was significantly better than previous generations,” Brewer said. “And I believe generations to come will have a better journey than my own because of research.

“Only research can find the answers to incurable diseases and provide better treatment plans.”

Odnokon said the money will fund a variety of ongoing research and could spur interest in other fields. He said lung health in Indigenous populations was an area both the SHRF and the Lung Association hoped to learn more about.

“When you’re diagnosing and treating a condition that may develop or may look different in different cultures and different races, it’s something we need research on to try and figure out,” he said.