Scleroderma Canada

We are pleased to welcome the Canadian Scleroderma Research Group (CSRG) to our 22nd Bi-Annual National Scleroderma Conference Exhibit Hall!

Founded in 2003, the CSRG is a national network of researchers and healthcare professionals dedicated to advancing scleroderma research and improving patient outcomes across Canada.

Today, the CSRG supports one of the world's leading scleroderma registries, with clinical data and biospecimens from more than 1,600 patients, fostering groundbreaking research and collaboration.

They are excited to connect with patients, caregivers, and healthcare providers to discuss the relaunch of CSRG 2.0 and explore new opportunities to advance research, innovation, and patient-centered care in scleroderma.

Would you ignore the signs?

Recognizing the early symptoms of scleroderma matters more than you think. Early awareness can lead to faster diagnosis, better treatment options, and improved outcomes.

Don't overlook the signs.

Scleroderma starts small. Awareness shouldn't.

I was diagnosed with Diffuse Systemic Scleroderma in April of 2016, just over ten years ago now.

The effects of Scleroderma and Raynaud’s has been life altering.

Raynaud’s is constantly with us all day and night and varies with intensity depending on many conditions, like temperature of the weather, how well we are feeling and intensity of stress internally or externally.

There are certain relaxation and stress techniques to help stress like yoga and exercise, which can help some.

I personally have found heated gloves in the winter is a must and I could not be without them. Extra coats, lined pants, wool sweaters and warm hats and boots are also very helpful. I now take extra clothes everywhere, all year, as things can change in a minute. Some of the extra things I use are heated bean bags and electric charged hand warmers.

Someone looking at me would not have any idea that just going in to a grocery store or a
building in the summer can be difficult because of air conditioning.

Raynaud’s is just one of a list of conditions we may have at the same time with Scleroderma.

Ken.

We are pleased to introduce Dr. Marie Hudson as a speaker at the 2026 national scleroderma conference in Ottawa.

Dr. Hudson is a rheumatologist and epidemiologist at the Jewish General Hospital and Lady Davis Institute, and an Associate professor and Member of the Division of Experimental Medicine in the Department of Medicine at McGill. She pursues research in systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARD). She is a founding member of the Canadian Scleroderma Research Group (CSRG) which, since 2003, has involved 15 sites across Canada, 20 clinicians and 10 basic scientists, recruited over 1600 patients, secured over $4 million in funds from CIHR, FRSQ, industry and patient organizations, trained over 30 graduate and postdoctoral students and 40 summer students, contributed to over 100 peer-reviewed papers and become an internationally recognized scleroderma research program.

She has worked on a broad range of projects and contributed to landmark papers related to health-related quality of life, classification of disease, measures of disease status, renal crisis, lung disease, clinical correlates of autoantibody profiles, oral health abnormalities and psychosocial health issues in systemic sclerosis. In addition, given the rarity of the disease at hand, she has also established several international collaborations with leading scleroderma experts worldwide (International Scleroderma Renal Crisis Survey, Tri-nation (Canada, Houston, Australia) Scleroderma Cohort and International Systemic Sclerosis Inception Cohort (INSYNC). She currently co-leads the Scleroderma Clinical Trials Consortium (SCTC) Working Group on scleroderma renal crisis. Recently, she has developed new interests in epigenetic signatures and cellular therapies for scleroderma.

We are pleased to introduce Dr. Marie Hudson as a speaker at the 2026 national scleroderma conference in Ottawa.

Dr. Hudson is a rheumatologist and epidemiologist at the Jewish General Hospital and Lady Davis Institute, and an Associate professor and Member of the Division of Experimental Medicine in the Department of Medicine at McGill. She pursues research in systemic autoimmune rheumatic diseases (SARD). She is a founding member of the Canadian Scleroderma Research Group (CSRG) which, since 2003, has involved 15 sites across Canada, 20 clinicians and 10 basic scientists, recruited over 1600 patients, secured over $4 million in funds from CIHR, FRSQ, industry and patient organizations, trained over 30 graduate and postdoctoral students and 40 summer students, contributed to over 100 peer-reviewed papers and become an internationally recognized scleroderma research program.

She has worked on a broad range of projects and contributed to landmark papers related to health-related quality of life, classification of disease, measures of disease status, renal crisis, lung disease, clinical correlates of autoantibody profiles, oral health abnormalities and psychosocial health issues in systemic sclerosis. In addition, given the rarity of the disease at hand, she has also established several international collaborations with leading scleroderma experts worldwide (International Scleroderma Renal Crisis Survey, Tri-nation (Canada, Houston, Australia) Scleroderma Cohort and International Systemic Sclerosis Inception Cohort (INSYNC). She currently co-leads the Scleroderma Clinical Trials Consortium (SCTC) Working Group on scleroderma renal crisis. Recently, she has developed new interests in epigenetic signatures and cellular therapies for scleroderma