Lupus Ontario

What Lupus Ontario does

Lupus Ontario is a registered Canadian charity (Charity Registration Number 88333 1472 RR0001) headquartered in Oshawa, Ontario, operating since 1978 with formal incorporation in 1998. The organization delivers support, education, advocacy, and research funding for people affected by lupus in Ontario. Its service portfolio includes 9 interactive monthly support groups facilitated across the province, education programs delivered through webinars, podcasts, a monthly newsletter, an annual Lupus Symposium, and the bilingual "Living Well With Lupus" Facts booklet. On the research side, Lupus Ontario funds the Geoff Carr Fellowship (the only fellowship of its kind in North America, running since 1990) and the Honey Agar Fellowship for High-Risk Pregnancy in Rheumatic Diseases, supports 6 accredited lupus clinics across Ontario, and facilitates patient access to clinical trials and surveys. The organization co-supports the Canadian Lupus Databank (over 2,150 patients) in partnership with the Toronto Western Hospital Lupus Clinic.

The organization's revenue model is donation-based, raising funds through the annual WALK for Lupus Ontario (held across 15 Ontario locations from May to September), the LO Silent Auction, DIY community fundraisers, individual online donations, and corporate sponsorships. Cumulative donations over the past 10 years exceed $4.8 million CAD. Operations are supported by 1-10 staff, a 12-member volunteer Board of Directors, and a Medical Advisory Board. Lupus Ontario coordinates national advocacy with Lupus Canada and operates with no proprietary technology product; the website uses standard tooling including reCAPTCHA V3 for contact forms.

Lupus Ontario is governed independently, has no parent company, and is the largest provincial voluntary organization dedicated to improving the lives of people living with lupus in Ontario. The organization has historically grown through amalgamation (most notably the 2004 merger with the Hamilton Lupus Society) and continues to expand programmatic reach within Ontario without any disclosed geographic expansion outside the province.

Name

Lupus Ontario

Legal name

Lupus Ontario

Website

https://lupusontario.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Lupus Ontario is a registered Canadian charity that provides support groups, education, advocacy, and research funding for people affected by lupus in Ontario, operating 9 monthly support groups and funding the Geoff Carr Fellowship.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Patient Support and Advocacy Services

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA)

Keywords

• Lupus patient support
• Autoimmune disease education
• Medical research funding
• Patient advocacy services
• Charitable healthcare fundraising

Headquarters

HQ city

Oshawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: Lupus Ontario raises funds through donations from individuals, corporate sponsors, and community fundraisers including the annual WALK for Lupus Ontario, the LO Silent Auction, and DIY fundraisers. The organization has raised more than $4.8 million in the past 10 years.
2. Charitable Donations: As a registered charity (88333 1472 RR0001), Lupus Ontario accepts donations through its website and various fundraising channels to support research, education, and patient support programs.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Lupus Ontario is a registered Canadian charity that provides free support, education, advocacy, and research funding for people affected by lupus in Ontario. Its core offerings include monthly facilitated support groups, educational webinars, podcasts, and a facts booklet, alongside research funding through the Geoff Carr Fellowship and Honey Agar Fellowship and direct funding of six accredited lupus clinics across the province. The organization funds its mission through donations and community fundraising events such as the WALK for Lupus Ontario held across 15 locations.

Product overview

Lupus Ontario is a nonprofit voluntary health organization offering a portfolio of patient support and education services for people living with lupus in Ontario. The organization operates nine interactive monthly support groups as its core support offering, supplemented by comprehensive education programs including monthly newsletters, webinars, podcasts, and an annual Lupus Symposium. On the research front, Lupus Ontario funds the Geoff Carr Fellowship and Honey Agar Fellowship, supports six accredited lupus clinics across Ontario, and facilitates clinical trials and surveys. The organization's flagship fundraising event is the WALK for Lupus Ontario, held annually across 15 locations in the province from May to September. Additional services include advocacy programs for policy reform, educational resources like the Living Well With Lupus Facts Booklet (available in English and French), and healthcare partnerships including the Toronto Lupus Program and Young Adult SLE Clinic. The organization does not offer a technology product but provides its services through its website, which uses reCAPTCHA V3 for contact forms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Raised over $4.8 million in 10 years to support lupus research and community programs
• +2 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Lupus CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLupus Ontario works with Lupus Canada to advocate for improved access to information, health services, and research at the national level.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Lupus Foundation of America: Large US-based voluntary health organization dedicated to lupus. Same disease-specific research, support-group, and advocacy model as Lupus Ontario but operating at national scale with a much larger budget.
• Lupus Canada: National lupus voluntary health organization that Lupus Ontario partners with for advocacy and research coordination. Directly comparable mission, disease-specific scope, and donation-based revenue model.
• Lupus Research Alliance: US-focused lupus research-funding organization. Overlaps with Lupus Ontario on research grantmaking (e.g., fellowships, clinic funding) for the same disease.

Others

• ALS Society of Canada: Canadian voluntary health organization for ALS using a similar disease-specific support, advocacy, and research-funding model. Comparable in mission scope and provincial operating footprint.
• Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada: Canadian voluntary health organization for MS using a comparable model of provincial chapters, support groups, walk fundraising, and research fellowships. Strong structural parallel to Lupus Ontario's operating model.
• Crohn's and Colitis Canada: Canadian voluntary health organization for IBD using a comparable support-group, walk-fundraising, and research-grant structure. Operates in a parallel chronic autoimmune disease niche.
• Arthritis Society of Canada: Canadian voluntary health organization for arthritis and related autoimmune conditions. Overlaps with Lupus Ontario on autoimmune patient education, support groups, and research grantmaking in a related disease area.
• Sjögren's Society of Canada: Canadian voluntary health organization for Sjögren's syndrome, a related autoimmune disease with overlapping patient demographics. Similar small-staff, donor-funded, support-and-advocacy model.

Broad incumbents

• Canadian Cancer Society: Large national Canadian voluntary health organization. Much broader portfolio but uses the same donation, walk-fundraising, and patient-support playbook that Lupus Ontario follows at provincial scale.

Regional players

• Lupus Europe: European federation of national lupus patient organizations. Comparable mission of advocacy, awareness, and research support but operates across Europe rather than Ontario/Canada.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/LupusON
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@lupus_ontario
• Facebookfacebook.com/lupusontario
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lupus-ontario
• Instagraminstagram.com/lupusontario

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Lupus Ontario