Diagnosis motivates New Brunswick man to improve life for others living with Parkinson Disease
Brain Canada among participants in October 23 roundtable to develop three-year plan to advance research and care
Looking back, the signs first appeared in his early 30s, a decade before the diagnosis. But doctors couldn’t pinpoint the cause of Mark Taylor’s restless legs, and whatever he was dealing with seemed to develop in stages and over time.
By 2021, the Fredericton father-of-two noticed his thumb start to twitch. He felt stiff and off balance. His walking changed.
It took a couple more years – more doctor visits, more tests, and a long wait for specialized care – until a neurologist confirmed that Mark, then 44, had Parkinson’s, a progressive neurological disorder of undetermined cause that affects movement, speech, swallowing, and more. More than 100,000 Canadians live with the condition.
As the disease progressed, things once automatic for Mark – taking a walk or going out to dinner – required careful planning to hit the sweet spot in his medication cycle so his tremors were controlled.
“I have to plan my day around my medication,” says Mark, a former journalist who works in communications with the provincial government.
“It definitely challenges your mental and physical health,” he explains. “And, each day is different.”
Coming to terms with the disease was hard. “My wife and my kids are amazing. They have been very supportive through the whole process,” he says. But after he was first diagnosed in 2024, a lack of coordinated information about available local resources, the latest research, and programs in New Brunswick complicated his new reality.
“I started thinking: Is there a way I can help with that?”
- Mark Taylor
Mark mobilized his personal networks and pitched the idea of forming a working group to connect researchers, clinicians, health system leaders, and people with lived experience. Shortly after, in March 2025, the New Brunswick Parkinson’s Working Group was established. He serves as its Chair.
By October 2025, the group, which includes universities, health authorities, research networks and Parkinson Canada, organized the first SOLVE (Strengthening Outcomes, Learning, Voices and Engagement) Parkinson’s Conference, where 120 people gathered to brainstorm and develop a plan to improve care, research, education, and awareness.
Results were immediate and led to the development of educational webinars for New Brunswick family physicians, and sessions for people with Parkinson’s and their families to improve understanding of the disease and connect to resources.
“We want to show people that there is hope -- not only hope in general, but hope close to your home.”
- Mark Taylor
The group also worked with health authorities to coordinate better care, and with the University of New Brunswick on a clinical research pilot project to improve access to specialized physiotherapy. A targeted exercise program, co-developed by Moncton-area residents living with Parkinson’s and medical students at the local university, will launch soon. As well, the group is bringing Dancing with Parkinson’s, a popular program in other parts of Canada, to two sites in New Brunswick this year and as an online offering.
In June, Brain Canada participated in the working group’s first roundtable, which involved stakeholders from 11 organizations. The roundtable produced a report with 30 recommendations. A follow-up roundtable with 13 different organizations, including Brain Canada, takes place in Moncton on October 23 to operationalize the report into a three-year plan. The meeting is the day before Parkinson Canada and the Michael J. Fox Foundation will host the Parkinson's IQ & You conference there.
"Brain Canada is proud to contribute to conversations that bring together diverse perspectives and help strengthen connections between research, care and lived experience," says Fiona Sanderson, PhD, Senior Program Manager at Brain Canada.
"The work underway in New Brunswick and across Atlantic Canada is creating momentum for meaningful change, and we are pleased to participate in developing a coordinated vision for Parkinson's research and care in the region."
- Fiona Sanderson, Senior Program Manager at Brain Canada
“Brain Canada has been wonderful to work with and we look forward to continuing to collaborate with them on Parkinson's research in New Brunswick,” Mark says. “They will contribute tremendously to the October roundtable by sharing their expertise and best practices for advancing research.”
There’s no question that Parkinson’s has a champion in Mark Taylor. He has taken a difficult diagnosis and worked tirelessly to improve the lives of others in his province, and across Canada.
“We really want to bring people together to make good things happen and have everybody moving in the same direction,” he says.
“One of the things that's especially rewarding is just seeing the difference that it makes when people have actually benefitted from the projects and services we've been able to develop.”