Defeat Duchenne Canada

1 in every 5,000 Canadian boys suffer from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Around the globe, 20,000 children are diagnosed with Duchenne each year.

About

Defeat Duchenne Canada is the country’s only national charity dedicated to ending Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Our goal is to provide leadership in research, advocacy, and support to ensure every Canadian affected by Duchenne can live a long and active life.

We are a community of families living with Duchenne, advocates, donors, researchers and care practitioners. Together, we are tackling all aspects of the Duchenne diagnosis – from the psychosocial effects through pursuing enhancements in research and treatment. Our goal of a cure is lofty, but the boys and young men we are fighting for are worth it. We are happy you are here to learn more about our organization and the people whose lives you are changing by believing in a world without Duchenne.

Our Impact

When Defeat Duchenne Canada was founded in 1995 as Jesse’s Journey, there were no clinical trials targeting Duchenne and no approved treatments. Since 1995, Defeat Duchenne Canada has invested $18.6 million of donor dollars towards 63 groundbreaking research projects across the globe. Your investment proved the gene responsible for Duchenne can be repaired. It identified a sequence in the dystrophin gene that is essential for helping muscle tissues function, a breakthrough labelled as finding “a needle in a haystack.” And it discovered Duchenne is a stem cell disease which led to further drug targets for Duchenne. Since 1995, most importantly, the average life expectancy of a child living with Duchenne has increased from late teens to close to 30 years of age.

Thanks to your support, leading Duchenne scientists are making progress that families living with Duchenne desperately need and want. Together, we will defeat Duchenne.

How your gift will be used

Your gift brings us one step closer to a future without Duchenne.

Regardless of what your budget is, your support fuels life-changing research and essential programs that bring critical support, education, and connection to families navigating the daily challenges of Duchenne, reminding families that they are not alone, giving meaning and dignity to lives shaped by uncertainty.

Thank you for selflessly supporting boys and young men living with Duchenne. Because of you, there is hope for cure and a future without Duchenne.