Season’s Greetings – December 2025

🎄 A Message from Your Trustees – Season’s Greetings to all CLL patients, your caregivers, and whānau. 

🌟 Trustee Updates
CLL Advocates NZ is becoming more active as we look ahead to a General Election less than a year away.
1. New Trustees:
We welcome Bronny Colquhoun, Craig Marshall, and Sue Osborne – all New Zealanders living with CLL who bring valuable skills to our mission.
2. Patient Support Officer:
We are pleased to appoint Ingrid Ovenstone, whose husband was recently diagnosed with CLL.
Learn more about our team on the CLL Advocates About Us page
3. We continue to benefit from the expertise of Amy Holmes, Consultant Haematologist at St George’s Cancer Care Centre in Christchurch, as our Medical Director.
4. We are also privileged to have Ruth Spearing, a distinguished New Zealand haematologist and global leader in clinical trials, as part of our advisory team.

🗣 Opinion Pieces
With election year approaching, our focus is on advocacy and patient voices.
1. Ingrid Ovenstone has written an opinion piece – read it here
2. Bronny Colquhoun’s piece is in progress and will be published soon.
3. Together with Blood Cancer NZ (formerly Leukaemia & Blood Foundation), we are contributing to a major election-year campaign for better treatment options and outcomes.

💊 Pharmac News
Rob Crozier has been participating in monthly Consumer Stakeholder meetings with Pharmac executives.
Key updates from the 10 December meeting:
1. OFI Consultation: Pharmac has decided not to proceed as proposed. They are considering alternative options and will make a formal announcement before Christmas.
2. 2026 Budget Bid: Pharmac is one of the few Government entities allowed to bid for extra funds. Most others face freezes or cuts.

🌐 CLLANZ Website Refresh
We are updating and refreshing our website to make it more useful for patients and caregivers.
If you have suggestions, please email us at info@clladvocates.org.nz.
Visit us anytime at clladvocates.nz

💌 Closing Note
Till next time… stay well.
Warm regards,
Rob Crozier
On behalf of the Trustees CLL Advocates NZ