EDIIC Webinars
View an EDIIC Webinar
The EDIIC (Equity, Diversity, Inclusivity, and Indigenous Care Committee) Committee has hosted a number of EDI-focused webinar/learning events which are hosted here as an educational resource for CARO members.
Why Radiation Oncology?
Join our panel of current staff ROs and residents to learn more about this exciting specialty! Topics discussed in this webinar are: The day-to day life of an RO, life in residency, common misconceptions, job opportunities, diversity in the field, and how to get involved in RO as a medical student.
Staff radiation oncologists:
Dr. Jessica Chan – BC Cancer Vancouver
Dr. Amanda (Amy) Khan – BC Cancer Victoria
Dr. Elizabeth Kurien – Arthur Child Cancer Centre
Residents:
Dr. Auriele Volk – Arthur Child Cancer Centre
Dr. Connie Le – Cross Cancer Centre
Dr. Aquila Akingbade – Verspeeten Family Cancer Centre
Women in Radiation Medicine
Dr Lindsay Rowe
Dr Lindsay Rowe completed her medical school training at the University of Alberta in 2010, and entered her residency training at the Cross Cancer Institute in Edmonton, Alberta the same year. After her residency, Dr Rowe went on to perform a two year clinical research fellowship and began her career as a staff radiation oncologist in the United States at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland before she returned back to Alberta in 2019. She is currently an assistant professor and radiation oncologist at the Cross Cancer Institute in Edmonton. She has a clinical and academic practice that focuses on genital urinary and central nervous system malignancies. She has also been nicknamed an Alberta Cancer Foundation Research Rockstar because of her cutting edge research in PSMA PET for prostate cancer, and because of her tireless efforts in advancing the health of Albertans through clinical trials. Dr. Rowe presented her inspiring talk called “Finding Focus, what Excellence has Taught Me” at the 2025 CARO ASM.
CARO Webinars on Truth and Reconciliation
2 Part Series with Dr. Cassandra Felske-Durksen
Dr. Felske-Durksen is Otipemisiwak and a Citizen of Métis Nation within Alberta and its Otipemisiwak Métis Government. Her kokum’s mosom signed scrip in Fort Vermillion is 1899. She has kinship ties across the Northern Prairies and Sub-Arctic of Turtle Island, including the Red River, and its Rebellion. All her medical training was in the unceded Coast Salish territories at the University of British Columbia. Cass’ clinical work in reproductive and sexual health with oppressed populations and genocide survivors hails out of the Indigenous Wellness Clinic in ᐊᒥᐢᑲᐧᒋᐋᐧᐢᑲᐦᐃᑲᐣ (Edmonton).
She hosted a 2 part webinar for CARO on Truth and Reconciliation to allow CARO members to better understand the Oncology Care of Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Ways of Knowing and Healing and how we can support Indigenous peoples in the ongoing process of building and maintaining a renewed relationship with the Crown based on respect, partnership, and the recognition of rights. It involves acknowledging past harms from colonialism and systems like residential schools, sharing the truth of this history, and taking action to address the intergenerational impacts. The ultimate goal is to create a mutually respectful framework for living together and establishing strong, healthy Indigenous nations within Canada.
INDIGENOUS ALLY CLINICAL TOOLKIT: COLONIAL CONTEXT GUIDE
INDIGENOUS ALLY CLINICAL TOOLKIT: GLOSSARY OF TERMS
INDIGENOUS ALLY CLINICAL TOOLKIT: REFERENCES AND RESOURCES
INDIGENOUS ALLY CLINICAL TOOLKIT - GREYSCALE
Sexual and Gender Diverse Patients with Cancer:
Current Disparities and Future Actions to Promote Equitable and Inclusive Care
Dr. Jennifer Croke, MD MHPE FRCPC
Pronouns: She/Her
Radiation Oncologist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network
Associate Professor, Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Toronto
Program Director, University of Toronto Department of Radiation Oncology Fellowship
Dr. Jason Domogauer, MD, PhD
Pronouns: He/Him
Perlmutter Cancer Center, New York, NY
Director, LGBTQ+ Program
Director of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, Department of Radiation Oncology
Clinical Instructor, Department of Radiation Oncology
Learning Objectives:
To review terminologies for sexual and gender diverse patients
To describe health related disparities and inequities experienced by the 2SLGBTQIA+ community
To understand and implement inclusive communication approaches
Oncology Care of Black Patients: A Provider and Patient's Perspective
Dr. Doreen Ezeife, MD MSc
Medical Oncologist, Arthur Child Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Calgary, Alberta
Michelle Audoin
Michelle is a mother of 2 and who has worked in elementary education. Her cancer advocacy journey started in 2017 after she was diagnosed with two primary cancers…de novo metastatic breast cancer and thyroid cancer. At the time, she was trying to make a decision about her reconstruction options, and quickly learned that Black women were not represented in the images of breast reconstruction. This led her to create Uncovered: A Breast Recognition Project, a resource that features breast cancer images and stories of Black, Indigenous, and women of colour. It was created in collaboration with Rethink Breast Cancer. The resource has been used as an education and teaching tool at the Canadian Cancer Society, Ontario Health, and at UHN
Learning Objectives:
To understand barriers to equitable access that Black patients face in oncology
To review the research around cancer outcomes by race
To learn how systemic/radiation therapy affects skin of colour differently
To experience a patient's perspective on their personal lived experience in the oncology system as a Black patient
Healthcare Equity in Cancer Care: Implications for Radiation Oncology
Dr. Annette Brown, RN, PhD
Professor & Distinguished University Scholar, Associate Director, Graduate Programs at UBC
Learning Objectives:
To introduce the ideas underpinning health equity, cultural safety and trauma/violence-informed care
To discuss the implications of equity-oriented approaches in cancer care and for radiation oncology
To identify ways of promoting equity-oriented approaches in clinical practice