Women will have improved access to cancer care as the Province expands gynecological oncology surgical services to new regions and strengthens the teams providing care with more staff, including new gynecological oncologists.

“Over the past 10 years, rates of gynecological cancer have increased by almost 50%,” said Premier David Eby. “When someone is diagnosed, they need the best possible care, close to home, where they have the support of friends and family. We are establishing new surgical and treatment services in Kelowna and Surrey and further expanding services in Vancouver and Victoria. The expansion of this critical provincial program includes hiring more health-care workers and nearly doubling the number of surgeons providing gynecologic cancer care in B.C.”

The expansion of services and care teams throughout B.C. will significantly improve access to specialized surgical and related cancer treatment for women and people assigned female at birth. Gynecologic cancers include cervical, ovarian, vaginal, endometrial, uterine cervix, vulvar, gynecological sarcoma, Fallopian tube and gestational trophoblastic neoplasia.

“Expanding gynecological oncology services, increasing the number of surgical and treatment centres from two to four and hiring additional gynecological oncologists is a significant step forward for female cancer care in British Columbia,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Health. “This initiative reflects our ongoing commitment to providing timely and specialized care for women facing gynecologic cancers and is a crucial part of our broader strategy to support cancer patients and their families across the province.” 

The new programs will be established in Kelowna and Surrey to address the growing demand for gynecological cancer surgical care throughout B.C. These are in addition to two existing programs in Vancouver and Victoria, which previously delivered gynecological cancer care to people from throughout the province.

“I am very pleased to see gynecologic oncology services expanded in health authorities throughout the province,” said Dr. Sarah Finlayson, division head of gynecologic oncology, Vancouver Coastal Health. “With this much-needed expansion, patients will receive quality care closer to home and we will see improved wait times for cancer surgery.”

Seven new gynecological oncologists will work with cancer-care teams that include as many as 76 full-time equivalents (FTE) of family physician oncologists, nurse practitioners, nurses, clinical pharmacists, unit clerks and other clinical and administrative support staff.

“As a woman from a rural community myself, I know how important it is for patients to have care close to home and to be supported by their loved ones, to have timely access to care and to reduce their financial burden,” said Dr. Joni Kooy, a gynecologic oncologist who is joining the new program in Interior Health. “I and my two surgical colleagues are joining an exceptional team at the cancer centre in Kelowna, and I look forward to getting started.”

The program in Kelowna is expected to start in September 2024, with services provided by three new gynecological oncologists as well as a team of as many as 27 FTEs of new clinical and administrative support staff to provide enhanced pre- and post-surgical support.

The second new program will be located in Surrey and will be staffed by three gynecological oncologists as well as an enhanced pre- and post-surgery support team.

In addition to the two new programs, gynecological oncology services in Victoria will be expanded through the addition of a third gynecological oncologist, as many as 22 FTEs of new clinical and administrative support staff, and increased operating room hours.

The Vancouver program will increase to seven gynecological oncologist FTEs and 20 FTEs of new clinical and administrative support staff. Since January, additional operating-room hours have been added at Vancouver General Hospital to support increased access.

This work is supported through the Province’s recent investments to improve cancer care. As part of Budget 2024, government invested $270 million over the next three years to support B.C.’s 10-year B.C. Cancer Action Plan, which outlines actionable steps to better prevent, detect and treat cancers, delivering improved care for people facing cancer now, while preparing for growing needs.

In January 2024, the Province announced a provincewide cervix self-screening program, Canada’s first at-home screening option. Along with the cancer-preventing HPV vaccine, B.C. could eliminate cervical cancer in a decade. From January to May, more than 50,000 kits were sent to people throughout the province.

Staff recruitment to support the expansion of cancer care in B.C. is part of B.C.’s Health Human Resources Strategy, which advances 70 actions to retain, recruit and train health-care workers in B.C., while supporting innovative health-system redesign and optimization.

Quick Facts:

• A gynecological oncologist is a physician who specializes in treating women or people assigned female at birth with reproductive-tract cancers.
• It takes 11 to 12 years of training to become specialized in gynecological oncology.
• In 2023, 2,026 people in B.C. were diagnosed with gynecological cancer, representing an increase of 46% from 2013.

Learn More:

To learn more about B.C.’s 10-Year Cancer Action Plan, visit: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2024HLTH0090-001025

To learn more about B.C.’s Health Human Resources Strategy, visit: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2023HLTH0150-001930

A backgrounder follows.