A GIST Day of Learning (GDOL) is a free one-day event to help patients and caregivers learn more about this rare cancer, find support, and enhance their knowledge base to help them navigate their cancer journey. The Life Raft Group has a simple focus: to cure a form of cancer — GIST – and to help those living with it until then. To do this, The Life Raft Group focuses on three key areas: research, patient support & education, and advocacy, which lay the foundation of our mission to ensure the survival of GIST patients through a comprehensive approach connecting individual patients’ needs, the worldwide community of GIST advocates and the global health and research environment.
GDOLs take place across the US at major sarcoma/cancer care centers. GDOLs have been held in NYC, NJ, Boston, Philadelphia, Oregon, Arizona, Chicago, and Columbus, Ohio to name a few.
The Life Raft Group holds between 3-5 GIST Days of Learning per year. Some years the events are a mix of in-person and virtual events, mostly on weekends. GDOLs are generally not recorded, however, occasionally an institution has funding to do so or a GDOL might be a virtual event and therefore is recorded. All recordings (webinars, GDOLs, and Life Fest) can be found on our YouTube channel.
Upcoming fall 2026 GDOLs will be in Minnesota – September 26 and San Diego – October 24
Recent GDOL recordings include :