Cancer is the third leading cause of burden of disease for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. While Australia’s cancer survival rates are among the best in the world, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to experience a different pattern of cancer incidence and significant disparities in cancer outcomes compared with non-Indigenous Australians.

In 2017 it was estimated that 24,287 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (4 per cent of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population) were living with HBV. The rate of HBV infections was higher for this population living in regional and remote locations; however, non-Indigenous Australians had slightly higher infection rates in cities (The Kirby Institute 2018). Liver cancer was the seventh most common cancer for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians between 2009 and 2013. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians were more than twice as likely to develop and die from liver cancer than non-Indigenous Australians, with a five-year survival rate of 9 per cent (AIHW 2018b).

For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, health and connection to land, culture, community and identity are intrinsically linked. Health encompasses a whole-of-life view and includes a cyclical concept of life–death–life.

The distinct epidemiology of cancer among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and unique connection to culture, highlight the need for a specific optimal care pathway for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with cancer. Ensuring this pathway is culturally safe and supportive is vital to tackling the disparities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Published in 2018, the Optimal care pathway for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with cancer provides guidance to health practitioners and service planners on optimal care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with cancer across the cancer continuum.

In addition to the key principles underpinning cancer-specific pathways, these are the key concepts that are fundamental to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health:

• providing a holistic approach to health and wellbeing
• providing a culturally appropriate and culturally safe service
• acknowledging the diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
• understanding the social determinants and cultural determinants of health (Cancer Australia 2015).

To view the Optimal care pathway for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with cancer, visit the Cancer Australia website. To view the consumer resources– Checking for cancer and Cancer, visit the Cancer Australia website.