'Be Like Bruce': Chris Gordon gives momentum to Saskatoon cancer researchers

Researchers Under the Scope

From his time as captain of the Saskatoon Blades, to a career with the Saskatoon Police Service and the law -- Bruce Gordon was the kind of father, athlete and coach who inspired everyone around him.

After he was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer in 2017, his wife Chris joined family and friends to start a wave of 'Be Like Bruce' fundraisers.

"We were stunned and to be given a diagnosis of absolutely zero hope was devastating," said Chris Gordon.

In his last months, Bruce spoke openly about his cancer, and how unfair it felt as he went through chemotherapy and tried to make the most of his last weeks on earth.

He and his wife Chris both said the sense of love and community support they felt in that time was 'overwhelming'.

But Chris Gordon also witnessed the pain her husband endured.

"It was excruciating for him," she said. "The treatments, the management for pancreatic cancer. Nobody should have to go through what he had to go through."

After he died, Chris Gordon knew donations in Bruce's name truly had to uphold her husband's motto -- "Community Above All Else".

"I wanted it to have an impact on the community," she said. "I was able to reach out to the university and that's where I discovered the Cancer Research Centre."

Through the College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan, Chris Gordon set up the Be Like Bruce Memorial Pancreatic Research Fund, with every dollar staying in her city at Saskatoon's Cancer Research Cluster.

Over the past four years, private donations to the the #BelikeBruce Memorial Pancreatic Research fund have raised nearly $50,000.

In this episode, we hear her story, and from both Dr. Andrew Freywald and Dr. Franco Vizeacoumar, who explain why donations like Gordon's are 'absolutely crucial' when equipment malfunctions, or needs to be replaced.

"That definitely helped us to move forward fast and more effectively," said Dr. Freywald. "It helped us also to accelerate pancreatic cancer related work, as well as investigations and other types of cancer."

Over time, Freywald and Vizeacoumar and their teams used their findings in targeting pancreatic cancer tumours to leverage more than $1.3M in grants. Those, in turn, led to advances in treating breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and prostate cancer.

"Getting that laboratory-based discovery into the clinics and that's really the ultimate goal of any cancer researcher. And that's what me and Andrew are striving for," said Dr. Vizeacoumar.

For Vizeacoumar, Freywald and Chris Gordon, the work won't stop anytime soon. They're all motivated to build a better future for anyone diagnosed with cancer.

"I don't wish this upon anybody, that any family go through what our family has gone through," Gordon said. "My hope is to bring awareness and insight to people that our donations do make a difference."

The University of Saskatchewan continues to be a leader in cancer research. Each dollar donated stays in Saskatoon, and has a vital impact on what researchers like Dr. Freywald and Dr. Vizeacoumar are trying to achieve. To find out how you can ‘Be Like Bruce’ and make a difference, visit the College of Medicine's donation page.