Tammy Truman’s passion: improving the diagnosis to treatment experience
In 1992, Tammy Truman was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease after a long and uncertain search for answers, painfully waiting for months as she struggled with worsening symptoms.
That was only the first hurdle, though: determining a treatment plan brought its own struggles and no immediate relief following diagnosis. Like today, there were no definitive tests to guide treatment or therapies tailored to the individual. Care depended on trial and error, with patients moving through medications and approaches until something worked, if at all.
What troubled her most wasn’t just the physical symptoms, but the persistent doubt about her care. She couldn’t help wondering whether every possible avenue had truly been explored. Were there other treatments to consider? Could a different approach make a difference? Had something important been overlooked?
More than 30 years later, many of the frustrations of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) care remain unchanged. But a transformation is finally on the horizon.
Tammy with IBD Precision Medicine Program campaign scientific advisor, Dr. Remo Panaccione (University of Calgary)
New scientific discoveries, tools, and technology are now on the verge of being harnessed for IBD diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. And fueled by her own experience, Tammy is determined to help lead that shift forward.
Precision medicine—using advanced diagnostics, biomarkers, AI, and real‑time imaging to tailor treatment to each patient— is poised to reshape how Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are managed in the years ahead. Instead of waiting for complications or cycling through medications, physicians will be increasingly able to predict disease behaviour, monitor inflammation, and adjust therapies earlier and more accurately.
Investing in precision medicine means giving patients something she never had when she was diagnosed: clarity, confidence, and a faster path towards recovery.
While Tammy’s support of precision medicine is deeply personal, it’s also deeply strategic. After a 43‑year career in insurance and business leadership, she understands the value of investing early. She also believes in investing wisely and upstream. For her, precision medicine is about shaping a future where care is proactive, personalized, and transformative—investing today to create better outcomes for tomorrow.
Tammy hopes that the momentum behind precision medicine signals an end in sight:
“I hope no one has to go through what I went through and what many others with Crohn’s or colitis have gone through in finding that diagnosis and getting on the right path to the right drug. I’m excited to be part of this groundbreaking campaign and helping Crohn’s and Colitis Canada move forward in launching the IBD Precision Medicine Program."