Call to Action - Advancing Indigenous Leadership in Global Cancer Control

Draft International Indigenous Cancer Leadership Call to Action Feedback Questionnaire

Kia ora and thank you for connecting.

The two goals of the International Indigenous Cancer Leadership Call to Action are:

1. To encourage international cancer control organisations to engage with Indigenous cancer leaders.
   
   
2. To encourage international cancer control organisations to demonstrate intention and goodwill to support and resource Indigenous engagement.

You are invited to review this draft Call to Action and provide any comments or suggestions below.

Preamble
Cancer inequities experienced by Indigenous Peoples worldwide are profound, persistent, and unjust. Across regions and health systems, Indigenous Peoples continue to experience higher cancer incidence, later diagnosis, reduced access to effective treatment, and poorer survival than non-Indigenous populations. These inequities are systemic, preventable, and rooted in historical and ongoing exclusion from power, resources, and decision-making within health systems. Indigenous cancer leaders and scholars have explicitly called for the opportunity to partner with international cancer control leaders to address these inequities through shared leadership, knowledge exchange, and global accountability.¹²³
The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) affirms the right of Indigenous Peoples to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health and to full participation in the design and delivery of health services, without discrimination (Article 24).⁴ These rights establish a clear obligation for states, multilateral actors, and professional organisations to address the structural causes of Indigenous health inequities.
The Lancet Indigenous Cancer Call to Action positions cancer equity for Indigenous Peoples as a global health and human rights obligation—not a niche or optional issue. It recognised that cancer inequities are driven by racism, exclusion, and failures of accountability within health systems, and calls for Indigenous leadership, culturally safe care, improved data, and structural reform.³
In parallel, the draft WHO Global Plan of Action on the Health of Indigenous Peoples (2027–2034) commits the multilateral system to strengthening Indigenous Peoples’ leadership within the global health architecture. Action Domain 1.3 specifically calls on actors in the multilateral system to scale up intentional and sustained mechanisms—and funding—to strengthen Indigenous Peoples’ engagement with UN agencies, multilateral organisations, professional associations, global partnerships, and civil society.⁵
International cancer control organisations play a critical role in shaping global evidence, norms, agendas, and investments. This Call to Action invites leading international cancer control organisations to move from recognition to shared leadership and sustained action.

Purpose
This Call to Action seeks formal commitment from international cancer control organisations to support Indigenous leadership in global cancer control, in alignment with UNDRIP, the Lancet Indigenous Cancer Call to Action, and the draft WHO Global Plan of Action on the Health of Indigenous Peoples.

Call to Action for International Cancer Control Organisations

1. Engage with Indigenous cancer leaders
Signatories commit to intentional, sustained, and respectful engagement with members of the World Indigenous Cancer Network (WICN) and Indigenous cancer leaders, organisations, and communities, recognising Indigenous Peoples as rights holders, leaders, and knowledge holders—not merely stakeholders or beneficiaries.
This engagement should:

• Support and embed Indigenous self-determination through leadership in shaping global cancer strategies, research priorities, surveillance approaches, and advocacy agendas;

• Establish or strengthen mechanisms for Indigenous participation and leadership in governance, advisory bodies, committees and decision-making forums;

•  Respect Indigenous self-determination, and cultural authority.

• Respect Indigenous data sovereignty, including alignment with the CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance—Collective Benefit, Authority to Control, Responsibility, and Ethics—which complement the FAIR Principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable), and with Indigenous-led frameworks such as Te Mana Raraunga, ensuring Indigenous Peoples retain authority over the governance, access, use, interpretation, and stewardship of their cancer data across global cancer control initiatives.

• Promote culturally safe, strengths-based, and community-led approaches across the cancer continuum, including prevention, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, and palliative care.

This commitment reflects WHO Global Plan of Action Domain 1.3, which calls for strengthening Indigenous Peoples’ roles within the global health architecture through intentional and sustained mechanisms.⁵

2. Demonstrate intention and goodwill to support and resource Indigenous engagement
Signatories affirm their intention and goodwill, within organisational mandates and available resources, to support and resource Indigenous-led engagement and leadership, recognising that meaningful participation requires more than consultation.
As resources allow, organisations commit to:

• Enabling Indigenous participation through practical supports, including coordination, technical collaboration, travel, advisory roles, and secretariat functions;

• Leveraging existing programmes, partnerships, and funding mechanisms to strengthen Indigenous leadership and capacity;

• Advocating within organisations, networks, and donor environments for sustained investment in Indigenous-led cancer initiatives;

• Avoiding symbolic or extractive engagement practices, and instead fostering long-term, reciprocal, and accountable relationships.

Shared Principles
All signatories commit to the following principles in implementing this Call to Action:

• Indigenous self-determination and leadership, consistent with UNDRIP;

• Cultural safety, respect, reciprocity, and relational accountability;

• Equity-focused data reporting, transparency, and system accountability;

• Recognition of Indigenous cancer equity as integral to global cancer control and human rights obligations.

Conclusion

International cancer control organisations have both a responsibility and an opportunity to contribute to eliminating Indigenous cancer inequities worldwide. By committing to Indigenous leadership and partnership, signatories affirm that cancer equity for Indigenous Peoples is central to achieving global cancer control goals, advancing the right to health, and meeting international obligations under UNDRIP and WHO frameworks.

This Call to Action represents a collective commitment to move from acknowledgement to action, from intent to implementation, and from exclusion to shared leadership—in partnership with Indigenous Peoples worldwide.

REFERENCES

1. Garvey G, Bill L, Burhansstipanov L, Scott N, Whop L, editors. Indigenous and Tribal Peoples and Cancer. 1st ed. Cham (CH): Springer Nature Switzerland; 2024. [link.springer.com]
2. Sarfati D, Garvey G, Robson B, Moore S, Cunningham R, Withrow D, et al. Measuring cancer in Indigenous populations. Annals of Epidemiology. 2018;28(5):335–342.
3. Sarfati D, Robson B, Garvey G, Goza T, Foliaki S, Millar E, Scott N, et al. Improving the health of Indigenous people globally. The Lancet Oncology. 2018;19(6):e276–e284.
4. United Nations. United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. New York: United Nations; 2007.
5. World Health Organization. Draft Global Plan of Action on the Health of Indigenous Peoples (2027–2034). Geneva: WHO; 2024.
6. Gruber K. Improving cancer control initiatives in Indigenous people. The Lancet Oncology. 2024;25:1117–8.
7. Carroll SR, Garba I, Figueroa-Rodríguez OL, Holbrook J, Lovett R, Materechera S, et al. The CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance. Data Science Journal.   2020;19:43. https://doi.org/10.5334/dsj-2020-043
8. Te Mana Raraunga – Māori Data Sovereignty Network.
   Māori Data Sovereignty Charter. Auckland; 2018. Available from:
   https://www.temanararaunga.maori.nz
9. Wilkinson MD, Dumontier M, Aalbersberg IJJ, Appleton G, Axton M, Baak A, et al.  The FAIR Guiding Principles for scientific data management and stewardship. Scientific Data. 2016;3:160018. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2016.18

1. Feedback on the Draft Call to Action

Please share any comments, suggestions, or feedback you have on the draft International Indigenous Cancer Leadership Call to Action.

4. If yes above (3) please complete your details below