Cancer Research Society has large funding reserves that can cover over five years of grants. In 2021, the charity raised $29 million and supported cancer research with $9.5 million in grants. Read Charity Intelligence's report before you donate to this charity with a 2-star rating.

Founded in 1945, Cancer Research Society (CRS) raises money to fund cancer research. The charity funds research on cancer prevention, detection, and treatment. According to the charity, there are over 200 different types of cancer, and it is the leading cause of death in Canada.

Cancer Research Society distributed $9.5m in cancer research grants and scholarships in F2021, down from $12.0m in F2020. It reports that of total funding, 73% went to research on cancer treatments, 27% to research on causes and prevention, and 1% to research on detection. 

CRS has two core funding programs: operating grants and strategic initiatives. It also offers scholarships for next-generation scientists. 

Operating grants fund basic, early translational, and environmental cancer research. Most grants are $120,000 over two years. In F2021, Cancer Research Society selected 67 new research projects to fund. With 74 ongoing research projects also funded during the year, CRS supported 141 research projects in F2021 (down from 144 in F2020). 

Strategic initiatives are large-scale, collaborative research projects co-funded with partners such as Canadian Institute of Health Research, Merck Canada, and Canadian universities. One notable new initiative is the Prostate Cancer Biobank, funded in collaboration with PROCURE and other donors. According to the charity, the biobank of over 2,000 patients will help identify genetic indicators of prostate cancer associated with tumour aggressiveness and recurrence.

The remaining research funding went to scholarships. Cancer Research Society's scholarships are for new researchers completing their fellowships. Each scholarship is $170,000, distributed over three years. In F2021, CRS awarded three new scholarships and continued funding for eight other scholarships. 

Cancer Research Society is a Major 100 charity, meaning it is one of the country's largest in terms of Canadian donations. It received $29.2m in donations and special events fundraising revenue in F2021. Administrative costs are 4% of total revenue (excluding investment income) and fundraising costs are 44% of total donations. This results in a total overhead spending of 47%. For every dollar donated, 53 cents go to cancer research. This falls outside Ci's reasonable range for overhead spending. 

Cancer Research Society invested more in fundraising than it did in cancer grants in F2021. For the last three years, CRS has spent $35.9m on fundraising relatives to $35.8m in cancer research grants. Administrative costs associated with managing research grants are presented as program costs. In F2021, it cost CRS 4 cents to manage each dollar of research grants made that year, which is a strong grant management ratio. 

CRS holds $55.1m in funding reserves, including $222k in endowed funds. The charity does not disclose whether these funds are board endowed or donor endowed. The charity's reserves can cover annual grants spending for 5.6 years or 3.8 years based on average program costs over the past three years. 

CRS reports annual research grant and fellowship commitments in its audited financial statements. The charity has committed to distributing $20.3m (37% of funding reserves) over the next four years: $13.4m in F2022, $6.6m in F2023, $315k in F2024, $20k in F2025. 

CRS's three largest grant recipients in F2021 were University of Montreal ($852k), University of Sherbrooke ($675k), and University Health Network ($522k). 

This charity report is an update that has been sent to Cancer Research Society for review. Comments and edits may be forthcoming. 

Updated on June 10, 2022 by Ann Lei.