The Oncology National Course for Advocacy, Research, and Education (ONCARE) is a Canadian initiative started in 2023 with the goal of promoting medical student interest and competency in oncology. This was driven by multiple studies, both in Canada and internationally, showing that medical learners of all levels perceive their oncology instruction to be inadequate.Since inception, ONCARE has enrolled over 600 medical students from across 15 Canadian medical schools. Students have the opportunity to enrol in several lectures covering the most common cancers, a clinical skills workshop teaching important oncology communication skills, as well as several enrichment opportunities, including a mentorship program, national essay competition, and Arts in Oncology showcase. You can read more about ONCARE here: DOI: 10.1007/s13187-024-02533-7.
ONCARE 2026 is currently available for enrolment for all Canadian medical students; please fill out this form and you will be contacted in January 2026. If you are not a Canadian medical student but are interested in partnering, we welcome form submissions as well.
We would like to feature the following talented participants who contributed to the ONCARE 2025 Arts in Oncology Showcase:
Their beautiful submissions will be uploaded here and shared to the broader LearnOncology community in the coming months.
As part of ONCARE 2025, participants were given the opportunity to submit an essay based on one of three prompts. The winners are recognized below, with links to their winning works for download.
Joanna Deng , UofT Temerty Faculty of Medicine, Class of 2026
Joshua Waldman, University of Manitoba, Class of 2027
Enoch Yu, Queen’s University, Class of 2028
As competition results were very close, select authors who participated in the essay competition were also invited to undergo a revision process with their essays reviewed by a minimum of three oncology attending physicians and feedback integrated into their final submissions. You can find their essays below:
Rena Patricia Seeger
Kelvi Toskovich
Jessica Maher [Essay 1], [Essay 2}
Dou A, Du J, Alfieri J, Croke J, Nghiem TPL, DeVries K, Gill S, Ingledew PA. Impact of a National Virtual Oncology Course on Medical Student Competency and Interest in Oncology. J Cancer Educ. 2025 Aug;40(4):490-496. doi: 10.1007/s13187-024-02533-7. Epub 2024 Oct 25. PMID: 39453536.
