A team at the BC Cancer Kelowna Centre is leading a research project to better understand the experiences of patients and families who have experience with brachytherapy treatment and explore how it can be improved. The project recognizes that medical treatments can sometimes feel overwhelming or bring up difficult emotions, especially for those who have had difficult or traumatic experiences. The goal is to ensure care feels safe, respectful, and supportive for everyone.

The team is looking for a patient and/or caregiver to share their story. Their experiences will help shape recommendations for how brachytherapy is delivered at the Kelowna Centre to better meet the needs of those receiving care.

As a partner, you will work alongside the research team and contribute your perspective to different parts of the study. This may include reviewing how participants are invited to take part, helping shape the interview questions, and supporting how the team understands and shares the research findings.

Involve: Partners are involved throughout the engagement to provide feedback.

The Planetary Health Working Group brings together staff, clinicians, and operational leads who are committed to improving sustainability at the Vancouver Centre. The group’s goal is to initiate and support sustainability projects within our center. The VCC working group operates in conjunction with the provincial BC cancer Planetary health unit, but focuses on local initiatives that can be spread throughout the organization.

The group is seeking up to two patient and/or family partners to join the working group. Partners will be involved supporting sustainability efforts at the Centre. This includes contributing to ongoing and future initiatives, such as:

Collaborate: Partners collaborate with the project team in decision-making throughout the engagement

Location: Virtual Meetings

Date: July 1, 2025 - ongoing

Time Commitment: 1 hour per month 

Honorarium: $30/hour

Closing date: June 23, 2025

A team of radiation therapists is conducting a research study to better understand the experiences of patients and families during brachytherapy sessions. The goal is to improve the care experience by hearing directly from patients about what is working well, what could be improved, and what truly matters to them during brachytherapy treatment. To gather this information, the team will be distributing a survey to patients currently undergoing brachytherapy.

They are looking for two patient and/or family partners with lived experience of cervical and/or endometrial cancer and/or brachytherapy treatment to:

Involve: Partners are involved throughout the engagement to provide feedback.

Location: Virtual meetings

Date: June 2025 – June 2026

Time Commitment: 1-4 hours per month

Honorarium: $30/hour

Closing date: June 23, 2025

Many individuals who are referred for prostate cancer treatment already have some risk of heart problems, even before starting hormone therapy (also known as androgen deprivation therapy, or ADT). This therapy can increase those risks. 

A team including a Radiation Oncologist, Nurse Practitioner, Medical Oncologist, Internal Medicine Specialist, and Cardiologist is working on a project to improve heart health care for people with newly diagnosed prostate cancer who are starting hormone therapy. The goal is to better identify and reduce heart-related risks for patients undergoing ADT (androgen deprivation therapy) as part of their cancer treatment. This will be done through a Nurse Practitioner-led Cardiovascular Clinic (NPCC) at BC Cancer Victoria centre. 

As part of this work, the team would like to hear from four patient and/or family partners to take part in a small group discussion. The group will explore the following: 

Involve: Partners are involved throughout the engagement to provide feedback.

Location: Virtual meetings

Tentative Date: 2nd July 2025

Partners are not required to commit to a 1-year term

Time Commitment: 2 hours total 

Honorarium: $30/hour

Closing date: June 23, 2025