Cancer care in the Northwest Territories

The Northwest Territories (NWT) is one of the three territories in Canada and is located above or north of the 60th parallel. The Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority (NTHSSA) is the largest health authority in the territory and was created in 2016 as a consolidation of pre-existing regional health authorities. I have been an oncology nurse in the NWT for the past 11 years, spanning my entire nursing career. During that time, the NTHSSA's Cancer Care team has expanded and worked hard to increase access to consistent, coordinated, and high-quality oncology care and supports, vastly improving NWT residents' cancer care experience and outcomes. This article describes the evolution of cancer care and patient navigation in the NWT.