LGBTQIA+ and cancer: Common questions

You might wonder if your sexual orientation or gender identity matters in your cancer care or feel unsure how health professionals will respond. It’s normal to have these questions.

You decide what and when to share. Letting your care team know more about you, including your sexuality, gender, or relationships, can help them support you better, from including your partner, to understanding how treatment affects your body or future.

At Canteen, we believe you deserve care that respects who you are. Your voice should be valued, your preferences listened to, and you should feel like an equal partner in decisions about your treatment.

If you’re not ready to share, that’s okay - your comfort comes first. Simple things like introducing your name and pronouns can help, and if you still feel disrespected, it’s okay to ask for a healthcare professional who affirms and supports you.

Most health professionals are used to talking about personal health stuff in a safe and confidential way. If it’s not already in your medical records, and you feel it’s important for your cancer care, you might want to share things like:

- your sexual orientation,
- your gender and pronouns,
- variations of sex characteristics,

- any past experiences of trauma, including medical or emotional trauma,
- your medical history (like past surgeries, hormone blockers, hormone replacement therapy or gender-affirming hormones).

It’s also totally normal to feel unsure about sharing, especially if you’ve had negative experiences with health professionals in the past, or if you’re not out in all areas of your life.

When you feel comfortable being open with your care team, it can really make a difference. It helps them consider all possibilities when looking at symptoms (for example, ovarian cancer in a trans man), gives them the full picture to provide safe and informed care, and makes it easier to connect you and your whānau with support services that truly fit your needs.

How much you share and with who is completely up to you. Some people choose to only tell the health professionals they see most often, and that’s okay.

Some health services show clear signs that they’re welcoming and inclusive, which can help you feel more comfortable sharing your identity. Look out for things like rainbow flags, Rainbow Tick accreditation, posters, or statements about supporting LGBTQIA+ communities. You’ll often see these on a service’s website, in their waiting room, or at the front door.

If you’re unsure, you could call or email ahead to ask whether they regularly support LGBTQIA+ people and if they have an anti-discrimination policy. Sometimes it might feel easier for a whānau member or friend to ask these questions for you.

Before your appointment, you might also notice whether intake forms ask about pronouns, gender, and sexual orientation, or if the website uses inclusive language and mentions staff training. And remember, sometimes you just get a sense about whether a health professional or service will be the right fit for you. It’s okay to trust your instincts.

Cancer can sometimes make you feel isolated from friends or peers. Support groups can be a great way to connect, but you might worry about whether conversations around relationships, sexuality, or fertility will be inclusive. You’re not alone in this.

If you have a partner or whānau (whether biological, chosen, or family of origin), you can bring them to appointments for support and to show your doctors who’s important to you. Introducing them, like “This is X, my girlfriend,” can help make that clear.

Canteen offers therapeutic support in person, online, or over the phone. We also host LGBTQIA+ friendly events, where you can meet like-minded rangatahi, to connect and share the tough stuff.

There are also LGBTQIA+ organisations you can reach out to as well, like Rainbow Youth. Finding people who understand your experience can make a huge difference.

Sometimes health systems record the gender you were assigned at birth, or an old name, which can lead to misgendering. This can feel upsetting or may make you feel invisible. You have the right to be addressed in a way that respects who you are. Introducing yourself with your name and pronouns, or wearing a pronoun badge, can help remind people. If misgendering keeps happening, you can ask to see someone more respectful - your comfort matters.

Any information you choose to share about your identity should stay confidential in a healthcare environment. If your doctor shares information without your consent, that is not okay, and you have the right to speak up about how that affects you. Your safety and trust are important in your care.

Read more about your rights in healthcare as LGBTQIA+ impacted by cancer.

You may feel that you have to teach others about your sexual orientation and/or gender identity. And if you’re trans or non-binary, you might find people don’t understand what this means. It can be tiring to explain yourself over and over, especially if you’re still learning about who you are.

You don’t have to take on the job of educating others about your identity. If a health professional wants to learn more, you can always point them towards organisations like InsideOut or Rainbow Youth for resources and information.

It’s really important to have health professionals you feel safe with, right through your cancer journey - from diagnosis and treatment to follow-up care. You deserve support that respects who you are, and you shouldn’t have to miss out on treatment, help with side effects, or ongoing care because of a past negative experience.

If you have concerns, you may be able to talk to the head of the department, a patient representative or a patient advocate. Some hospitals may even have an LGBTQI+ patient navigator which could support you.

You also have the right to make a complaint about any aspect of your health care. Read more about your rights in healthcare as LGBTQIA+.