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A team of Ottawa Hospital ear, nose and throat specialists examines men and women in homeless shelters on
Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Day.

Once a year, a group of ear, nose and throat specialists from The Ottawa Hospital takes their cancer-screening services to Ottawa’s homeless shelters.

Why? Because heavy smoking and drinking – major risk factors for head and neck cancers – are common among Ottawa’s homeless men and women. Their chances of developing the diseases are disproportionately higher than those of the general population.

The paradox is that many of these patients don’t want to go to a hospital for early detection and treatment. By the time they finally see a doctor, their disease is typically so advanced that it becomes very difficult to treat.

So, the hospital’s specialists took their clinic to the people. They took a quick medical history of each patient, performed ear, nose and throat exams and ordered diagnostic tests for those with a high degree of suspicion of cancer. In one morning, they screened about 100 people at six shelters. The clinic takes place once a year on Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Day.

“We are here to help these members of the homeless community in a setting that puts them at ease,” said Dr. Ryan Rourke, an ENT resident. “Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Day lets us educate people on the risk factors. We know this population is at high risk and the sooner we detect cancer, the better the outcome will be.”

In the four years that an ENT team from the hospital has taken its screening program to homeless shelters, the specialists have screened about 500 people. Patients who receive a diagnosis are treated at the hospital’s Otolaryngology Clinic on a day reserved for homeless men and women.

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