InspireHealth (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Michael Reeve

Cancer Supportive Care

Free-of-charge cancer supportive care helps build community around Kamloops patients and caregivers

Jan 15, 2026 | 4:36 PM

KAMLOOPS — InspireHealth’s Supportive Cancer Care Centre is officially open in Kamloops, as the ribbon was cut on Wednesday (Jan. 14) evening at the Seymour Street location. The centre is designed to provide cancer patients and their support circles access to free programs and services to support their physical and mental health. The Kamloops location is the fourth in British Columbia, joining Victoria, Vancouver and Kelowna.

A dream now realized with the cut of the ribbon — free of charge cancer supportive care services are now available for all in Kamloops.

“We knew this is an organization that had one main common interest in mind and that was to better cancer patients through their cancer journeys,” said Pink Ribbon Ball founder Anthony Salituro. “We just knew it was a fit, so we were so excited this past summer when this space became available that we presented our cheque for $1 million to InspireHealth — and here we are, four months later.”

The brand new space will be used for everything for one-on-one consultations to group classes with physicians, counsellors, exercise therapists and registered dietitians.

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“I was in Kelowna. Kamloops is my hometown, so I was alone, isolated from family, and what I needed was a community of people to support me,” said cancer survivor Shelley Battistella Wednesday. “Obviously, when you are going through cancer and going through treatment you feel very alone, so every day, I walked up to InspireHealth where I found this amazing family who took me in and supported me.”

That support network is key when forced to navigate a diagnosis, while remaining steadfast in fighting and overcoming the cancer.

“I would have questions and my doctors, being here in Kamloops and Vancouver, couldn’t answer my questions in Kelowna, so I would make these appointments with a doctor at InspireHealth and it was just wonderful to be able to talk to somebody and for them to reassure me and make me feel comfortable with where my treatment was going,” added Battistella.

As many in British Columbia are without family doctors, InspireHealth will have a doctor on staff, working with the patients and their families, and being able to spend extended time to help lay out the path ahead.

“I get to actually sit there with them, and I get to actually spend the time to listen to what has been causing them the stress in their cancer journey, what are the questions that have been raised for them and what is making it hard for them to… continue with their treatment,” said Dr. C. Hertzel, who will be on staff at InspireHealth Kamloops. 

In addition to the in-house programming, patients will also have access to approximately 20 additional programs through InspireHealth’s virtual platform.

“This is a day of celebration — not just for cancer patients and their caregivers, but for all of Kamloops and the Interior. Look what a village can do,” said Ann McCarthy with the Kamloops Cancer Supportive Care Society.