Healthcare shouldn’t be a postcode lottery — especially not for LGBT people. But in Northern Ireland, if you lived outside Belfast and needed a cancer screening, you might as well have been asking for a unicorn.
Scott Cuthbertson, CEO of the Rainbow Project, is calling it out loud and clear: queer people living outside the big city deserve exactly the same access to healthcare as everyone else. And frankly, it’s about time.
“People could be more at risk of cancer if they are too afraid to access services because of their identity,” Cuthbertson said at the launch of a new initiative in Londonderry. The service? A bold, necessary program designed to drag healthcare in Northern Ireland into the 21st century — with a glittery touch of inclusivity.
Breaking Down Barriers — One Pronoun at a Time
This isn’t just about putting rainbows on clinic walls. The Cancer Champion Service — run by the Rainbow Project in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support — is tackling the real, terrifying reality that queer people avoid healthcare altogether for fear of ignorance or discrimination. That’s deadly.
“For a trans woman, breast screening might not even cross their mind,” Cuthbertson explained. “And for trans men? Forget it.”
It’s an outrageous gap that’s gone unchecked for too long. LGBT folks have historically had to flee small towns just to get basic healthcare or find a doctor who won’t flinch at their pronouns. Now, with the Cancer Champion Service expanding from Belfast into Derry and Strabane, that’s starting to change.
Healthcare workers are being trained to handle appointments with respect, empathy, and — shockingly — correct pronouns. Videos guide trans patients through procedures like breast cancer screening, while LGBT patients are learning their rights: from asking for extra appointment time to making sure their pronouns are respected.
The Cost of Silence
Amie Martin knows the struggle firsthand. Identifying as non-binary and using they/them pronouns, Amie recalls medical appointments where their identity was ignored or misunderstood.
“It’s about making sure people know the information they can get and feel like they can be their authentic selves as they go through their cancer journey,” Amie said.
That fear isn’t just uncomfortable — it’s dangerous. Missing screenings, skipping check-ups, or avoiding the doctor altogether leads to late diagnoses and worse outcomes. For a community already battling stigma and discrimination daily, healthcare shouldn’t be another fight.
Another attendee at the launch admitted they wouldn’t even know where to begin if they wanted cancer screening. Others said walking into a clinic as a transgender person felt like putting a target on their back.
A Rainbow Future — For All
Julian Backhouse from Macmillan Cancer Support didn’t mince words: “Together we will break down unnecessary and unacceptable barriers to inclusion.”
And it’s not just lip service. The Department of Health has recognized the vital role this service will play, saying it will “support health and social care staff who are supporting individuals with cancer.”
For the LGBT community in Northern Ireland, this is more than a service — it’s survival. Healthcare is a human right, not a luxury reserved for those living in big cities.
As rural queers across Northern Ireland finally begin to see healthcare spaces reflecting their identities, the message is clear: your pronouns, your body, your life — they all matter. And your postcode shouldn’t decide whether you live or die.