Mō Mātou
Partnerships
Changing a cancer system takes more than one organisation. The work below is done alongside government agencies, clinicians, researchers, iwi and hapū, and the charities whānau already turn to.
Te Aho o Te Kahu
Te Aho o Te Kahu, the Cancer Control Agency, sets the national direction for cancer care in Aotearoa. Its New Zealand Cancer Action Plan 2026–2029 names Hei Āhuru Mōwai directly, both as part of the leadership shaping how the system responds to Māori, and as a partner in the work of building the Māori cancer research workforce.
“Hei Āhuru Mōwai, the national Māori cancer leadership network, plays a pivotal role in this transformation. Its members provide strategic guidance and advocacy to ensure that Māori perspectives are embedded across the cancer control continuum, from prevention and early detection to treatment and survivorship.”
The Plan commits the Agency to growing and supporting the Māori cancer research workforce in partnership with Hei Āhuru Mōwai, alongside Māori health leaders, iwi, hapū, research institutions and the wider cancer sector.
Te Kāhui Matepukupuku o Aotearoa
Hei Āhuru Mōwai partners with the Cancer Society of New Zealand to award the Māori Cancer Researcher Awards, supporting Māori researchers at Masters, PhD and early-career stages.
Growing the number of Māori researchers working in cancer is one of the practical ways the disparities whānau experience get addressed, because the questions that get asked depend on who is asking them.
Partners
These organisations have partnered with, funded and supported the work of Hei Āhuru Mōwai.
Each description was written for this site. It is not the partner’s own wording, and their websites say more about what they do.
Bowel Cancer NZ
A nationwide patient-focused charity working on bowel cancer through awareness, education, advocacy, research and support, and one of the cancer organisations working with Hei Āhuru Mōwai.
Breast Cancer Cure
Launched the Breast Cancer Fellowship with Hei Āhuru Mōwai and Breast Cancer Foundation NZ in 2024.
Breast Cancer Foundation NZ
Launched the Breast Cancer Fellowship with Hei Āhuru Mōwai and Breast Cancer Cure in 2024, awarded first to Dr Maxine Ronald.
Community Waikato
Provides Hei Āhuru Mōwai with expertise, guidance and administrative support, and supported its growth after it registered as a charitable trust in 2020.
Gut Cancer Foundation
Supported scholarships in the Māori Cancer Researcher Awards between 2023 and 2025, including two PhD candidates researching cancers of the digestive system.
Health New Zealand, Te Whatu Ora
Works with Hei Āhuru Mōwai on shared efforts to improve cancer outcomes, including the 2024 implementation plans for newly funded cancer medicines.
Health Research Council of New Zealand
Funded two research projects Hei Āhuru Mōwai supported in the year to June 2025, the Māori Cancer Research Platform and Rongoā and Cancer.
MAS Foundation
A grant in March 2025 supported the growth strategy of Hei Āhuru Mōwai, including work on an indigenous business model and new funding pathways.
Te Aho o Te Kahu, Cancer Control Agency
Its New Zealand Cancer Action Plan 2026–2029 names Hei Āhuru Mōwai as a partner in growing the Māori cancer research workforce, and it supported the 2026 World Indigenous Cancer Conference.
Te Aka Whai Ora, Māori Health Authority
Worked with Hei Āhuru Mōwai to develop cancer care coordination services with Māori health providers, and supported the Māori Cancer Researcher Awards, until it was disestablished in 2024.
Te Kāhui Matepukupuku o Aotearoa, Cancer Society of New Zealand
Partners with Hei Āhuru Mōwai to award the Māori Cancer Researcher Awards, Research Master's and PhD scholarships for Māori cancer researchers.
Te Rau Ora
Sits on the advisory group overseeing the design of the Hei Āhuru Mōwai Māori Workforce Development Programme, and welcomed delegates to the 2026 World Indigenous Cancer Conference alongside it.
Tourism New Zealand
Supported the successful bid by Hei Āhuru Mōwai to host the 2026 World Indigenous Cancer Conference.
Working with us
Hei Āhuru Mōwai works with organisations across the cancer continuum and beyond it, including those whose work reaches whānau well before a diagnosis and long after treatment ends.
If your organisation is considering how it works with Māori in cancer, or is looking for a partner in that mahi, we would like to hear from you.
Talk to us about partnering
