Ottawa Integrative Cancer Centre

About

The OICC provides evidence-informed integrative and preventative cancer care, research, and education across the spectrum of prevention to survivorship. Our approach emphasizes quality of life, care of the spirit, and active prevention of the disease.

Story

CCNM’s Ottawa Integrative Cancer Centre (OICC), which opened in Fall 20, is a model multi-disciplinary flagship centre providing whole-person integrative care to people with cancer, cancer survivors, and those seeking both primary and secondary cancer prevention.

The centre has been established to provide for the growing number of patients interested in receiving naturopathic and complementary support alongside their conventional cancer treatments.

Our team works with patients and their families to help decrease the side effects of cancer treatment; improve the energy, well being and overall quality of health; balance the body’s immune system; support the mind, body and spirit in the healing process; and provide strategies (support) for cancer prevention and health maintenance.

We do this through nutrition and lifestyle counselling, Intravenous (IV) therapy, registered massage therapy, physiotherapy, acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine.

The OICC will be the first integrative oncology and research centre in Eastern Canada to provide care, advocacy and education for the use of whole-person care to the cancer community and health-care practitioners, regionally and nationally.

Mission

Our mission is to provide evidence-informed integrative and preventative cancer care, research, and education across the spectrum of prevention to survivorship. The Ottawa Integrative Cancer Centre (OICC) will be a flagship model interdisciplinary centre that provides whole-person integrative care to people with cancer, cancer survivors, and those seeking cancer prevention.
Our objectives at the OICC are to:

Be a model for whole-person cancer care by providing optimal patient-centred integrative care and an example to support the creation of a network of associated centres across Canada.

Bridge complementary and conventional cancer care by assisting in reducing barriers through education, care, and research towards a more seamless, integrated, and empowering patient experience that includes complementary medicine.

Provide evidence-informed resources for patients and caregivers, making reliable information on non-conventional approaches to cancer care and prevention available for those with cancer and their families.

Conduct high-quality research in complementary cancer care by test the effectiveness of emerging therapies, natural health products, and complementary medicine in cancer care and prevention.

Address environmental contributors to cancer, by first researching the effects of toxic exposures, and then through educating the public on how to reduce exposure to the environmental toxins that promote cancer development and progression.

Train and educate others for integrative oncology, including health practitioners, students, and the public. By teaching the principles of integrative oncology, we positively impact the delivery of cancer care across Canada.