The Caribbean Cancer Portal was established to expand the range of services available for people affected by cancer in the Caribbean region, increase public access to cancer education and patient support services available through local and regional initiatives, and enhance decision-making by individuals regarding cancer prevention, treatment, and care.  The concept for the Portal was developed by Dr. Lindonne Glasgow, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine and a WINDREF Research Fellow and Mr. John Swope, a digital education specialist in the Office of Online Instructional Innovation at SGU. The Caribbean Cancer Portal is operated by the Windward Islands Research and Education Foundation (WINDREF) with the support of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Barbados and Eastern Caribbean Office, the Ministry of Health in Grenada, the Caribbean Association of Oncology and Hematology (CAOH), Grenada Cancer Society (GCS), and the Grenada National Chronic Non-communicable Disease Commission (NCNCDC). Cancer patients and household/family members, caregivers, health practitioners, and the general public can engage in various activities on the platform.    

Regional partners will collaborate to deliver synchronous and asynchronous cancer prevention and care education for the portal users.  It is expected that education will lead to timely and appropriate decisions to improve health outcomes.  The portal will also serve as a repository of information on oncology and related services available within and beyond the Caribbean region.  The directory will expand patients and caregivers’ access to information about a range of services and options for care. A supportive environment will be created for users to interact in theme-based (pre treatment, during treatment, post treatment) and general discussion forums. Resources will be hosted directly on the portal and through links to other platforms of regional and international partners.     

The portal can be readily accessed by anyone from any location in the participating countries through a QR code or site address. The virtual services can be accessed continually during and following adverse events such as pandemics and natural disasters, when there is restricted movement of people, and when limited resources are available for transportation, consultation fees, etc. to access services.  Users will be able to access the portal from the first quarter in 2022. The Caribbean Cancer Portal will be accessible primarily to residents in Grenada and St. Lucia in the first year.     

WINDREF expresses profound thanks to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Barbados and Eastern Caribbean Office, for providing technical support for the project. Special thanks to the representatives of the partner organizations for their contributions and guidance in creating the platform: Dr. Patrice Lawrence-Williams, Ms. Fiona Anthony, Dr. Owen Gabriel, Dr. Damian Greaves, Dr. Sonia Nixon, and Dr. Shawn Charles. Special thanks also to Ms. Sherry-Ann Joseph for assistance.