For 30 years, a dedicated team at the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) has been supporting people affected by cancer through the Cancer Information Helpline. This service provides current, reliable information to people with cancer, their caregivers and support systems, the general public and healthcare professionals.
The caring specialists who will listen, understand and help you navigate your cancer experience can talk to you about:
- any type of cancer
- cancer treatment and side effects
- clinical trials
- coping with cancer
- emotional support services
- prevention
- help in the community
- connecting you with people who have been there
Whether you’ve been diagnosed with cancer or you’re supporting a loved one with cancer, you might have many questions and challenges. While there’s plenty of information out there, it can be overwhelming and not always relevant to your situation. When you contact the Cancer Information Helpline, you’re speaking to a person who understands what you’re going through and can help you get the support and information you need when you need it most.
Ameek, a Cancer Information Helpline specialist, joined the team after completing her master’s degree in public health. She was interested in making health information more accessible, especially for people with cancer.
“In the oncology space, you're going to all these fast-paced appointments and receiving a lot of information from doctors. Unless you really know what exactly is going on, it's so easy to misinterpret things. It's hard to keep track of everything,” Ameek says. “Being able to help someone understand their situation better and feel better equipped as they're moving through their journey is really what drew me to the Cancer Information Helpline.”
Ameek breaks down everything you need to know about contacting the Helpline, what to expect when you call, frequently asked questions, and how you can access trusted resources and information specific to you.
What is the Cancer Information Helpline?
We're a national toll-free service that gives people with cancer, caregivers, loved ones and healthcare providers the opportunity to ask questions and receive credible information and resources.
While we can't provide medical advice, we can speak on what standardized care will look like, what to expect at appointments, types of questions to ask, and of course, we can also help you connect with lots of different resources. If you need added emotional support through your care or practical assistance, we can help guide you and get you connected with those resources as well.
We extend our services across every cancer type and stage of the cancer experience. You could be in the screening stage or getting specialized testing because you're high risk. You could be newly diagnosed with cancer, or you could be in your end-of-life or palliative stages. We're able to provide information and resources for you no matter where you are in your cancer experience.
We are fully bilingual, so we offer all our programs and services in English and French. But if anyone has a different preferred language, you have the option to connect with an interpreter through our phone service.
What are the different ways people can get in contact with the Cancer Information Helpline?
Our phone line is available from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Call us toll-free at 1-888-939-3333.
You can access our live chat service directly through our website, cancer.ca. A chat widget pops up when you're browsing and you can start a conversation. If we're not available, you can also leave us a chat message and we'll follow up with you.
You can email us at info@cancer.ca or complete a web form on the website.
We also offer a referral process which can be made through CCS lodges. If a lodge guest has questions or needs additional support, the lodge coordinators and staff can submit a referral on their behalf directly to the helpline. We'll then follow up and reach out to a guest or caregiver to discuss their needs further.
Similarly, healthcare providers can submit a referral form on our website. If a patient or caregiver has questions or needs extra support, a healthcare provider can refer them to us and we'll follow up directly.
What kind of practical supports can the helpline connect people with?
It's a wide range of resources, depending on what someone needs. We really do try to tailor each conversation based on where someone lives, their age, and their specific questions.
An example is transportation to appointments. That's a big one. Whether it’s Wheels of Hope, the CCS program, or external resources – we can help them coordinate that. Financial assistance is always a big one too. Whether they were employed prior to their diagnosis or if they were self-employed, we help them learn about government assistance that they might qualify for.
We can also help people access more specific things, like if they need medical equipment related to their treatment, if they need to make changes at home such as installing a hospital bed, or adjustments in their bathroom for certain equipment. We can help connect them with programs or stores that might be able to provide that kind of equipment locally.
Then, we also help people get things like wigs, headwear and prosthetics. We can help them order options available through CCS programs and also look elsewhere if they have more specialized needs.
How is connecting with the Cancer Information Helpline different than just searching for answers online?
The main difference is transparency about the information we refer to. There’s a lot of information available online, and it’s accessible in ways that it never was before. But our main concern is that you never know the source or the context behind what you're reading online.
When you connect with the Helpline, the information we're providing is from credible sources. We're always clear about where that information is coming from and how you can refer to them yourself if you need to. We have a team that works to manage our website, cancer.ca, and we credit the expert reviewers and references we use. When you connect with us, all the sources we refer to are trusted and have been peer reviewed.
If someone specifies a cancer type, the stage, their age and circumstances, we try to make sure the information is relevant to their situation. When you do a wide search online, it brings up anything and everything that might not be relevant to you. We’re kind of taking that heavy lifting away from you and making sure you have information applicable to your situation.
When you search something online now, your top summarized response is AI. Before, you had to go through and filter out the sources you thought were most reputable or accurate. But now, it's all summarized for you. So, unless you're really taking the time to go through the references that the AI overview is using, you might get a response that says there's nothing left for you to do, there's no trials, there’s no treatment. But that could just be from one source. It's becoming harder to spot AI and the source of information.
When you reach out to us, we have a full conversation with you. Even if we're following up by email with the same sources you found online, at least you can feel more confident knowing the information is credible or peer reviewed.
Who makes up the Cancer Information Helpline team? How do you all stay informed about cancer and the healthcare system in Canada?
We all have professional backgrounds in health or social services, so we understand the healthcare system in Canada. We also all go through oncology-specific training when we join the team. Since we're dealing with calls across every province, we need to understand the structural differences between them. So, all of us understand the healthcare processes, the difference in provincial health insurance plans, and things like that. Whenever people connect with a specialist, they can feel confident knowing that they’re talking to someone who has the knowledge and expertise to answer their questions and help with their concerns.
Things are always changing in oncology. There's always new research, new trials, treatments that previously worked, and possibly don't work now. Even with resources – there are always new charitable foundations and support groups popping up. So, we always do ongoing education to keep ourselves updated. That way, we can provide the best service to people when they reach out.
What are some frequently asked questions people contact the Helpline with?
The 3 main categories we get questions about are finances, emotional support and the cancer process in Canada.
The questions we get daily are about financial help. Sometimes it's not even about specific resources. It's just people who are newly diagnosed and are now trying to figure out what that'll look like. They may have worked full-time at a corporate job their entire life and need to take the next 6 months to a year off to focus on treatment. People reach out to us to understand what happens and what they can do in that situation. How are they going to pay their bills? How are they going to provide food or take care of their family?
A lot of the time, people don't realize that the government has benefits, whether that’s through provincial or federal programs, or local charitable groups like community organizations. We'll often step in and help people connect to a food bank, gas cards or things like that.
On the informational side of things, we also get asked daily about the whole cancer experience and what it looks like. People call in who have either just been diagnosed or have a loved one that's recently been diagnosed. So, we walk them through what the process looks like. For example, now they're going to be referred to a specialist who will work with them to figure out their options and the most appropriate treatment plan.
There's a lot of emotions that come up with a diagnosis, so we help people access those emotional supports as well. We can connect them with support groups, counselling, peer support and things like that. Sometimes, people know they need someone to talk to, but they just don't know who to talk to. Sometimes they don't know these programs exist or how to access them. People contact us because they feel overwhelmed and are maybe uncomfortable talking to their own family and friends, so they need an external outlet that they can connect with – with people who really understand what they're going through.
Who can benefit from contacting the Helpline?
Anyone affected by cancer. Sometimes people think they need to be diagnosed or in active treatment to reach out, and that's not true. People can call if they’re just worried about screening, or they have a family history of cancer they're concerned about.
We're here to help in those earlier stages or diagnostic phases as well. If you still have questions after appointments or you didn't understand something, we're happy to help bridge that gap. The medical terminology might not mean anything to you, but if you call in, we can help provide more context. Then, you can feel more confident and better informed going into the next appointment. I think that's the value of this service – we work alongside the conversations people are having with their healthcare teams.
Can people call on behalf of someone with cancer?
Yes, a large chunk of our questions come from caregivers or loved ones. We're always happy to speak with them. When they reach out, they’re often wondering how they can best support their loved one or the person with cancer. And there's no right or wrong answer to that kind of question. It’s so specific to the person, but we do have some information on our website that has general tips for helping someone. It gives you some ideas of how you can help, but what we really try to focus on is having that honest conversation with the person with cancer because everyone feels best supported with different things.
We often get calls about clinical trials and research from loved ones rather than the person with cancer. So, someone might say, “My mom has been told there are no options left. Are there are options for trials? What kind of ongoing research is happening?” It's nice to know people have someone advocating for them. We’re happy to help explore these options and share resources so you can feel more confident in the care your loved one is receiving.
How do you feel being part of the Cancer Information Helpline team and connecting with so many people every day?
It is honestly such a privilege. It's such a challenging time in people's lives. Even if someone has a diagnosis they've caught early and it seems like everything is going to be okay, there's still such a heavy emotional toll on not just them, but everyone supporting them. The fact that they're willing to open up and let us into that time with them is such an honour.
It's so special to be a part of someone’s care, whether it's in a small way, like helping them figure out how to get from their house to an appointment, to a larger call where you’re following up with a client a few times and guiding them through their experience. Either way, they're letting you into this difficult part of their lives. People will be honest and raw, and I know I keep saying it, but it really is just so special to know that they're trusting you with their story.
Our team is also so great to work with. We are always collaborating and supporting one another. I think that's quite special because while we're connecting with people, we're also connecting with each other to make sure we're sharing relevant, accurate resources.
How do you take care of your mental health after speaking to people about cancer every day?
Our mental health and well-being is always a priority. We’re able to take time as we need it. When you're doing this job every day, it can be easy to fall into a rhythm and move on from one interaction to the next. Then, there will be an emotional interaction, or situation that hit closer to home – like if they sound like your family, or if it's something that you may have experienced yourself, things like that. Our team and management is really supportive of one another, so, when we do feel like we need some time or a bit of a break, it's always available to us.
We also have tools to deal with escalated situations. We have mental health first aid and crisis training to deal with more challenging calls. This provides us with the knowledge of how to take care of ourselves and create healthy boundaries while still being supportive for the people that we're speaking with.
One approach we use is a ‘code lavender.’ This signals to our team that we've just completed a very challenging interaction and might need more time before connecting with our next client. It creates an opportunity to pause, regroup, and debrief if needed. Having this support helps us make sure we're caring for our own well-being so that we can continue showing up with empathy, compassion, and focus for the people we support."
Do you have any moments that stay with you after work?
It always comes back to people who are either newly diagnosed or experiencing a cancer recurrence after many years, and are revisiting the cancer and healthcare system. I think these interactions stick with me because when these people reach out with the news they've gotten from their doctors, it's really on us to reassure them and make sure that they feel comfortable as they move forward in their care.
Specific stories... it's so hard. There are so many people you talk to and sometimes the ones that will stick with you are for random reasons. When we're chatting with someone, they might share that they have the same birthday and that'll be a fun moment, or they'll mention that they have the same amount of siblings, or that they grew up in the same area as you. I think those personal connections are what resonate with me because you are reminded of that human connection.
In honour of the Cancer Information Helpline's 30th anniversary, is there anything you wish more people knew about the helpline?
The main message I always say is just give us a call or reach out. There's no need to prepare or have a very specific reason to contact us. You can call and let us know where you are in your experience, and we'll share what resources we think may be helpful for you. We do understand that cancer is such a challenging experience, and sometimes you may not be able to talk about everything yet. By speaking to us, you might realize there are gaps in your care or in the resources you're accessing that we can help fill for you.
Our Helpline is always there to listen, and we have the luxury of time. People often say that they feel rushed in appointments, or that they didn't get other questions answered. We're here for that. We're able to speak with you for as long as you need.
If you don't have anything to ask but need to speak with someone, I think that's the best time to call because we're happy to sit with you and figure out what you need. Even if there's no specific information or resources shared during that interaction, at least now you know how to reach us and you understand the services we offer. And if you do feel like you need something in the future, you know who to call.
The Cancer Information Helpline is available online, by phone and by email to answer your questions about cancer and help with any concerns you may have.
- Live chat with an information specialist
- Call the helpline toll-free at 1-888-939-3333
- Fill out the online form
Connect with specialists like Ameek.
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