Grant: Op. Gr. Adv. 2S_LGBTQI+ Heal. Thr. Res. - Cancer in 2S/LGBTQI+ Indiv and Comm
McMaster University
$700,000.00
Equity by Design in Canadian Oncology: Co-Developing a National Inclusive Research Toolkit and a Cancer Clinical Trials Scorecard for Sexual and Gender Inclusivity
FY 2025-26
Summary
The Challenge: For many 2S/LGBTQI+ and Two-Spirit, transgender, and gender-diverse (2STGD) people in Canada, cancer research was not built with them in mind. Discrimination, and systemic barriers can shape their experiences from prevention and screening through to treatment and recovery. Most clinical trials do not collect data on sexual orientation or gender identity, making it impossible to address the health inequities these communities face.
Our Approach: Co-led by researchers, clinicians, community advocacy groups, and a 2S/LGBTQI+ Advisory Board, this project addresses barriers keeping these communities out of cancer research, with a focus on prevention, early detection, and survivorship. We will develop two practical tools:
The Inclusive Oncology Research Toolkit: a resource to help researchers design trials that are welcoming for 2S/LGBTQI+ and 2STGD participants, including Indigenous peoples, racialized communities, older adults, and francophone populations.
The Cancer Clinical Trials Scorecard for Sexual and Gender Inclusivity: Canada's first benchmarking tool for cancer researchers and sites to assess and improve how inclusive their trials are.
What We Will Do: We will review 15 years of Canadian cancer trials to identify where 2S/LGBTQI+ people have been excluded, then conduct interviews and focus groups with patients, survivors, caregivers, clinicians, and research staff. Using this evidence, we will co-design both tools with community partners and patient advisors, then test them at a minimum of six cancer centres across Canada.
Why This Matters: 2S/LGBTQI+ communities face significant inequities in cancer screening, treatment, and recovery, but the research tools to address them do not yet exist. This project builds them: providing researchers with validated, community-designed resources to close gaps in cancer data, strengthen prevention and early detection, and improve survivorship for 2S/LGBTQI+ and 2STGD people across Canada.
Department
Program
Op. Gr. Adv. 2S_LGBTQI+ Heal. Thr. Res. - Cancer in 2S/LGBTQI+ Indiv and Comm
Recipient
Location
Ontario, Canada
Recipient Type
Academia
Type
Grant
Source
CIHR Funding Decisions Database
As published
Id
568426
Name
Nguyen Julie M
Region
Ontario
Country
Canada
Orgtype
Institution Paid; Research Institution
Instname2
Gender and Health
Theme2
Clinical
Prcname2
Advancing 2S/LGBTQI+ Health Through Research 2
Projecttitle
Equity by Design in Canadian Oncology: Co-Developing a National Inclusive Research Toolkit and a Cancer Clinical Trials Scorecard for Sexual and Gender Inclusivity
Programtype2
Operating Grants
Orgnameinp2
McMaster University
Cihramount2
$700,000
Cihrequipment2
$0
Programname2
Op. Gr. Adv. 2S_LGBTQI+ Heal. Thr. Res. - Cancer in 2S/LGBTQI+ Indiv and Comm
Keyworddelim
2s/Lgbtqi+ And 2stgd Health; Community-Based Participatory Research (Cbpr); Health Services And Systems-Level Interventions; Implementation Science And Knowledge Translation; Inclusive Clinical Trial Design; Indigenous Data Sovereignty (Ocap®); Institutional Benchmarking & Quality Improvement (Qi); Intersectionality And Sgba+ Frameworks; Oncology And Cancer Survivorship; Sogi Data And Population Health Analytics
Abstract
The Challenge: For many 2S/LGBTQI+ and Two-Spirit, transgender, and gender-diverse (2STGD) people in Canada, cancer research was not built with them in mind. Discrimination, and systemic barriers can shape their experiences from prevention and screening through to treatment and recovery. Most clinical trials do not collect data on sexual orientation or gender identity, making it impossible to address the health inequities these communities face.
Our Approach: Co-led by researchers, clinicians, community advocacy groups, and a 2S/LGBTQI+ Advisory Board, this project addresses barriers keeping these communities out of cancer research, with a focus on prevention, early detection, and survivorship. We will develop two practical tools:
The Inclusive Oncology Research Toolkit: a resource to help researchers design trials that are welcoming for 2S/LGBTQI+ and 2STGD participants, including Indigenous peoples, racialized communities, older adults, and francophone populations.
The Cancer Clinical Trials Scorecard for Sexual and Gender Inclusivity: Canada's first benchmarking tool for cancer researchers and sites to assess and improve how inclusive their trials are.
What We Will Do: We will review 15 years of Canadian cancer trials to identify where 2S/LGBTQI+ people have been excluded, then conduct interviews and focus groups with patients, survivors, caregivers, clinicians, and research staff. Using this evidence, we will co-design both tools with community partners and patient advisors, then test them at a minimum of six cancer centres across Canada.
Why This Matters: 2S/LGBTQI+ communities face significant inequities in cancer screening, treatment, and recovery, but the research tools to address them do not yet exist. This project builds them: providing researchers with validated, community-designed resources to close gaps in cancer data, strengthen prevention and early detection, and improve survivorship for 2S/LGBTQI+ and 2STGD people across Canada.
Competitiondate
202603
Approvedterm2
4 yrs 0 mth
Pinamesdelim
Nguyen, Julie M
Approvedterm
4 ans 0 mois
Cihrcontribution2
~ $700,000~ $0~
