{"id":22246,"date":"2025-05-04T19:39:12","date_gmt":"2025-05-04T06:39:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/clladvocates.nz\/?page_id=22246"},"modified":"2025-05-06T16:18:03","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T03:18:03","slug":"how-we-started","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/clladvocates.nz\/?page_id=22246","title":{"rendered":"How we started"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row row_height_percent=”0″ override_padding=”yes” h_padding=”0″ top_padding=”3″ bottom_padding=”3″ overlay_alpha=”50″ gutter_size=”4″ column_width_percent=”100″ shift_y=”0″ z_index=”0″ bottom_divider=”step”][vc_column column_width_percent=”100″ position_horizontal=”left” position_vertical=”middle” gutter_size=”3″ overlay_alpha=”50″ shift_x=”0″ shift_y=”0″ shift_y_down=”0″ z_index=”0″ medium_width=”0″ mobile_width=”0″ width=”1\/1″][vc_custom_heading heading_semantic=”h1″ text_size=”h1″ uncode_shortcode_id=”970754″]<\/p>\n

How we started<\/strong><\/h3>\n

CLLANZ was established in 2019 as a charitable trust.\u00a0 Below are the backgrounds of two of our founding trustees.<\/p>\n

<\/h5>\n

[\/vc_custom_heading][vc_row_inner limit_content=””][vc_column_inner column_width_percent=”100″ gutter_size=”3″ overlay_alpha=”50″ shift_x=”0″ shift_y=”0″ shift_y_down=”0″ z_index=”0″ medium_width=”0″ mobile_width=”0″ width=”1\/1″][vc_icon icon_image=”227″ media_size=”150″ title=”Dr Neil Graham 1950 – 2021″ link=”|||” uncode_shortcode_id=”898225″]Neil Graham was diagnosed with CLL at the age of fifty. In the ensuing years, as both a patient and a physician, Neil saw the need for better information and stronger advocacy for New Zealanders living with CLL. With support from others in the CLL sector, in 2019 he established CLL Advocates NZ, gaining membership of the global resource-sharing network\u00a0CLL Advocates Network<\/a> and formally launching the New Zealand group at a patient seminar in 2020.<\/p>\n

Neil gave tirelessly and freely of his personal time and professional expertise, both in talking and meeting with CLL patients and actively engaging with decision makers to advocate for better treatments for CLL. Neil was widely respected by the CLL and patient advocacy communities for his courage and commitment to this cause and is greatly missed.<\/p>\n

Neil Graham\u00a0FRACP, FRCP\u00a0qualified at Otago University, and undertook post-graduate training in Wellington and London. He worked as a consultant physician at Tauranga Hospital for thirty years, where his main clinical interest was in general medicine, and subspecialties included respiratory medicine and rheumatology. Other roles Neil held included: senior lecturer, Auckland University of Auckland Medical School; president of IMSANZ, and its NZ predecessor; examiner for RACP; and Director of Clinical Training, BOPDHB.[\/vc_icon][vc_separator sep_color=”” uncode_shortcode_id=”146859″][vc_icon icon_image=”20549″ media_size=”150″ title=”Dr Ben Schrader” link=”|||” uncode_shortcode_id=”148927″]Dr Ben Schrader 1965 – 2024<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ben, a founding trustee of CLL Advocates, helped establish our Trust in March 2019 alongside Neil Graham, Gillian Corbett, and Rebecca Graham. Despite his intermittent remission, he dedicated significant time to advocating for CLL patients.<\/p>\n

Ben led key initiatives, including a multi-patient march on Parliament in 2019 to petition for government funding of ibrutinib and venetoclax, and presented our case to a Health Select Committee. In 2021, he appeared before the Pharmac Review Panel, and in 2022, he contributed to and presented our submission on the Pae Ora Bill.<\/p>\n

Ben’s substantial contributions and willingness to take on public roles, despite preferring to work behind the scenes, greatly advanced our cause.[\/vc_icon][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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