Our Partners

The Arnie Charbonneau is a partnership between Alberta Health Services and the University of Calgary. This institution combines research and care disciplines to better understand and prevent cancer, improve detection and treatment, along with improving life with and beyond cancer. 

The Arnie Charbonneau Cancer Institute's generous donation has helped establish SPHERE and has contributed to the success of multiple projects. 

The Alberta Cancer Outcomes Research Network (ACORN) is a research collaborative network with a focus on health services research in oncology. The team consists of scientists, clinicians, trainees and research staff with an interest in improving outcomes for Alberta oncology patients. ACORN's presence on the provincial and national landscape is expanding as they collaborate with partners across Canada, and many of their trainees are making an impact through exceptional projects and research awards.

The ACORN team is working collaboratively to identify new ways to provide better access to cancer care, identify and correct drivers of high cost and waste in the cancer system, identify ways to ensure equitable cancer care for Alberta’s marginalized populations, and develop monitoring systems to ensure that care is consistent and aligns with best practice. ACORN welcomes new members into the collaborative network on an ongoing basis. For more information, please contact the program lead: Christie.Farrer@ucalgary.ca

The Canadian Cancer Society is a national, community-based organization of staff and volunteers whose mission is the eradication of cancer and the enhancement of the quality of life of people living with cancer. It is the largest national charitable funder of research into all types of cancer, and provides services to those living with cancer, advocates on important cancer-related issues and educates and empowers people to make healthy choices.

The Canadian Cancer Society supports SPHERE projects, including Reducing the Burden of Breast Cancer in Young Women (RUBY) through a joint funding partnership with Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). 

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) is a research investment agency that collaborates with partners and researchers to support the discoveries and innovations that improve health and strengthen the health care system. Composed of 13 institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support to health researchers and trainees across Canada.

Multiple SPHERE projects are or have been funded by CIHR, including RUBY, Preparing to Survive and Examining the Etiology of Young-onset Breast Cancer.

The University of Calgary (UCalgary) is one of Canada’s top comprehensive research universities, with a mission to discover new knowledge and translate its discoveries into applications that provide benefits to local, national and international communities. Across 12 faculties, UCalgary fosters collaborative, strategic, mutually beneficial and interdisciplinary research environments that have achieved national or international prominence. 

SPHERE operates within the Cumming School of Medicine and partners with professionals from the Departments of Oncology, Surgery, and Community Health Sciences.

Alberta Health Services (AHS) is Canada’s first and largest province-wide, fully-integrated health system, responsible for delivering health services to the more than 4.3 million people living in Alberta, as well as to some residents of Saskatchewan, B.C. and the Northwest Territories. 

SPHERE works with AHS' Health System Access team for data collection via REDCap.