Let's Dream Big Together: Help Us Find a Cure for Celiac Disease
At Celiac Canada, we invest more money into celiac research than any other non-governmental body in Canada. It’s a huge part of our mandate and one of our most important initiatives. However, because science-based research is (as they say) a “long game,” we don’t talk about it often enough.
The truth is research into a cure for celiac disease has made substantial progress over the last 15–20 years. But there’s still a long way to go!
As we push toward the goal of a cure, some of the biggest accomplishments have been understanding exactly how the disease works and developing therapies that target specific steps in the immune response.
Scientists now understand much more clearly how gluten triggers the immune system. This detailed understanding has allowed researchers to design treatments that target the disease process rather than just the symptoms.
The goal is not only protection from accidental gluten exposure, but eventually allowing people with celiac disease to eat gluten safely. Early results are encouraging, although no therapy has reached approval yet. And while several vaccine and tolerance-inducing approaches have shown promise, none have proven effective enough to replace the gluten-free diet.
What Researchers Are Working On
- A medication that protects against accidental gluten exposure.
- A drug that reduces intestinal damage when gluten is consumed.
- Supplements or adjunct therapies that improve intestinal functions to support overall health of people with celiac disease.
- And eventually, an immune-tolerance therapy that could function as a true cure by preventing the immune system from reacting to gluten.
Celiac Canada is playing a leadership role in bringing together Canadian researchers, clinicians, patients, governments, and other partners to identify our best bets for success.
Given the limited investments into celiac research currently, we need to make every dollar count. Celiac Canada can help lead that strategy with your support.
Watch Dr. Elena Verdu and Dr. Mark Wulczynski talk about the latest research happening at the Farncombe Institute at McMaster University.
The Celiac Disease Research Financial Picture
Encouraged by the progress towards a cure that we’re seeing, Celiac Canada is dreaming big: we’d like to see our investment in research reach $100,000 this year. It’s possible, with your help.
If we can raise $50,000 by December 31, 2026, a special estate gift will match donations to take us to our goal of $100,000. As of today, we’ve raised $12,000 – we need your help to raise the rest.
Will you dream big with us? For the funds? For a cure?
Every gift, large or small, one-time or monthly, will put us closer to the goal.
Thank you so much for dreaming and giving with Celiac Canada this month. Together, we can make a difference.
Meet Dr. Mark Wulczynski, a celiac disease researcher with the Farncombe Family Digestive Health Research Institute at McMaster University.
“People with celiac disease are encouraged to have more fibre to help with gut motility, and large observational studies have even observed a correlation between lower dietary fibre consumption and an increased risk of developing celiac disease.
Thanks to Celiac Canada’s support, I’ve been able to conduct research that showed removing wheat and most grains from the diet would, unfortunately, also decrease dietary fibre intake.
I observed that, regardless of diet, people with celiac disease had fewer fibre-degrading bacteria in their small intestine. These bacteria can digest fibre to create beneficial metabolites which promote gut health and protective immune functions.
The key takeaway is that improving the nutrient quality of the gluten-free diet may not be enough to improve the patient’s quality of life if people don’t have the right gut bacteria to do the job. The future may involve using strategies to modify the gut bacteria to optimize their activity to promote health from the inside out.
My current research continues to investigate the role of bacteria in gastrointestinal diseases and to validate a new non-invasive, blood-based diagnostic tool specific to celiac disease.”
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