Province adds $5.5 million to rural, remote cancer-screening efforts

By ANNA SMITH Local Journalism Initiative on May 16, 2025.

asmith@medicinehatnews.com

Roughly half of all Albertans will have cancer at some point in their lifetime. For those people, early detection may make a life-changing difference, and as such, the province is investing $5.5 million in cancer screening.

Alberta’s government is extending the Alberta Lung Cancer Screening Program and is providing grants to four organizations to improve access to cancer screening – particularly in rural, remote and Indigenous communities, said the province.

The pilot for the program launched in 2022, and since then, meant to determine if a provincially co-ordinated approach could improve lung cancer outcomes. With a promising opening, it is being extended with a $2-million investment and an additional $500,000 from the Alberta Cancer Foundation.

Since its launch, the Alberta Lung Cancer Screening Program has screened more than 3,800 eligible people in Alberta, with almost 90 per cent of detected lung cancers identified at an early stage.

“We’re making progress, with more people in Alberta surviving lung cancer than ever before, but more work remains,” said Adriana LaGrange, Minister of Health. “That’s why we’re funding the Alberta Lung Cancer Screening Program to support early detection and improved patient outcomes.”

In addition, four organizations have received funding to support cancer prevention and screening initiatives to improve health outcomes for people living in Alberta, including research, education, marketing and public policy development. In total, the funding for these comes to about $3 million.

These organizations are Alberta Health Services, Lakeland Métis Nation Association, Siksika Health Services and the University of Alberta.

Eligible Alberta-based health agencies and organizations, post-secondary institutions, non-profits, First Nations and Métis communities, as well as municipalities, can apply for funding under the program. The deadline for 2025-26 program funding, which includes a dedicated Indigenous stream, is May 30.

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