October 20, 2026
When you envision the people actively reshaping health policy and dismantling barriers to life-saving therapies, you likely imagine seasoned executives, veteran lobbyists or regulatory officials. You probably don’t picture a 14-year-old girl standing on the steps of the Ontario Legislature.
Yet that is precisely where Madison (Madi) Vanstone began her journey as a healthcare advocate. Diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF) at eight months old, Madi’s childhood was dominated by hospital admissions, rigorous treatments and relentless uncertainty.
At age 11, a clinical trial for a gene-targeted therapy changed everything, catapulting her lung function from 73% to 115%. But when the trial concluded, the drug was priced at $348,000 annually and denied public coverage in Ontario. Madi refused to accept a reality where survival depended on personal wealth. Instead, she rallied her community, took her fight directly to Ontario’s Premier and Health Minister and helped secure public funding for more than 180 patients.
A few years later, she fought again, helping to ensure that a next-generation therapy capable of treating roughly 90% of the CF population also received public funding.
Today, Madi brings that same relentless drive to her role as an account coordinator at GCI Canada. In recognition of her extraordinary trajectory, Madi has been named one of PRovoke Media’s 2026 Young Changemakers. The PRovoke Media Young Changemakers Awards is an annual global program that celebrates emerging communications professionals from traditionally underrepresented and marginalized backgrounds
We sat down with Madi to discuss her journey, the power of authentic storytelling in healthcare and what it means to lead change from the inside out.
Q: You started advocating at an age when most kids are just navigating middle school. What ignited that spark?
Madi: Some people find their purpose through opportunity. I found mine through adversity. When I enrolled in that clinical trial at age 11, the difference was immediate: for the first time, I could breathe. I could just be a kid. But realizing that the drug wouldn’t be publicly funded after the trial was devastating. I knew what it felt like to be on the other side of that medicine, and I couldn’t bear the thought of losing it — or watching other families suffer when an effective treatment existed.
By the time our campaign succeeded, I was 14 years old, and I had just helped change healthcare policy in Canada. That experience taught me that access for one is not enough. True change means holding the door open for everyone who comes next.
Q: How did your personal advocacy evolve into a professional career in healthcare communications?
Madi: Advocacy taught me the undeniable power of narrative. When a story is told clearly, with the right evidence and the right emotion, at the right moment, it can move governments, change minds and genuinely save lives.
As a healthcare communications professional, I work across pharmaceutical, patient advocacy and health policy communications. I help clients tell stories that drive awareness, shape access and improve lives. And I bring something most communicators don’t have: the patient’s perspective. I know what it is like to wait on a policy announcement with your future hanging in the balance, and that reality informs every campaign I touch.
Q: What issues are keeping you energized in your day-to-day work right now?
Madi: At GCI, I work on diverse initiatives — from supporting education campaigns with the Rett syndrome community to amplifying the lived experiences of individuals with ALS and raising awareness around the opioid crisis. Outside the agency, I continue to work alongside my mom through OntarioRare to advocate for the 1.3 million Ontarians living with rare conditions.
As someone who is immunocompromised, I needed an environment with the flexibility to manage my health without sacrificing my ambition. GCI gave me that foundation, allowing me to channel my energy toward making sure the next generation of rare disease patients doesn’t have to fight as hard as we did.
Q: What does the recognition as a PRovoke Media Young Changemaker mean to you?
Madi: It’s such an incredible honor! But for me, being a changemaker has never been about being the loudest person in the room. It’s about being willing to speak when it would be easier to stay quiet.
One person’s determination can open a door, but the real work is ensuring that door never swings shut. This award is something I share with every patient and family who has told their story in the hopes of creating a more compassionate, accessible healthcare system.
Hear more about Madi’s journey from patient to advocate in the PRovoke Media Young Changemakers podcast series here.