Advocacy: Using Your Voice to Improve Lymphedema Care
Advocacy doesn’t have to be complicated, political, or intimidating. At its heart, advocacy is simply about sharing your experience and helping decision-makers understand why lymphedema matters — to you, to your family, and to your community.
People living with lymphedema, caregivers, and health professionals all have powerful perspectives. When those voices are shared respectfully and consistently, they help shape awareness, policy, and access to care over time.
As part of World Lymphedema Day and Lymphedema Awareness Month, we encourage you to consider reaching out to your elected representatives and health leaders to help keep lymphedema visible.
Not sure where to start?
Who to Contact
You may wish to write to:
- Your local Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) or equivalent
- Your local Member of Parliament (MP)
- Your Provincial or Territorial Minister of Health
- The Federal Minister of Health
How to Reach Out
A short, thoughtful message is more than enough. You can:
- Send an email
- Mail a letter
- Do both, if you wish
There’s no need for formal language or medical expertise — authenticity matters far more.
A Few Helpful Tips
While you’re writing, remember the following:
- Keep it personal and respectful
- Short messages are perfectly fine
- Your lived experience is valid and valuable
- You don’t need to be an expert to make an impact
Find Your Health Minister
Find Your Provincial MP
Important Reminder: There is NO POSTAGE REQUIRED to send a letter to your MP, and MPs are obliged to reply to constituents and can refer your concerns directly to the relevant Cabinet Minister.
You can also contact:
What to Include: Helpful Prompts
If you’re not sure where to start, the following points can help guide your message. You don’t need to include everything — choose what feels most relevant to you.
- Introduce yourself
Briefly share who you are and where you live.
- Explain your connection to lymphedema
For example: living with lymphedema, caring for someone who does, or working in healthcare.
- Share your experience
A few sentences about diagnosis, access to care, financial burden, or day-to-day impact can be very powerful.
- Highlight why lymphedema matters
You may wish to note that lymphedema is a chronic, lifelong condition that affects an estimated 1.25 million Canadians and requires ongoing management and support.
- Identify a challenge or gap
This could relate to access to treatment, coverage for supplies or compression garments, wait times, or lack of awareness.
- Ask for attention or action
This doesn’t need to be specific or technical. Examples include:- Asking them to learn more about lymphedema
- Encouraging them to consider lymphedema in health planning and policy
- Requesting improved access to care and coverage
- Close with appreciation
Thank them for their time and for serving your community.
Advocacy looks different for everyone. Whether you send one message or many, your voice helps build awareness and momentum — and together, those voices make change possible.
The Canadian Lymphedema Framework, in collaboration with our partners at the eight provincial lymphedema associations, calls on the Government of Canada to immediately exempt medical compression garments from the newly announced 25% retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports.
These garments are essential medical devices, not discretionary textile goods, and without them, the 1.25 million Canadians living with lymphedema face the risk of serious health complications such as life-threatening infections and costly hospital admissions because of diminished access to affordable treatment.
The petition is available to sign in English or French.
Write A Letter To Government Officials
You can help protect access to medical compression for those living with lymphedema by writing to government officials about the impact of the 25% tariffs on compression garments.
To make it easy, we’ve prepared a pre-written letter template that you can duplicate, personalize with your information, and send to your local representatives. Your voice matters—help us ensure compression garments remain accessible and affordable!
