International Psycho-Oncology Society

What International Psycho-Oncology Society does

The International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS) is a Toronto-headquartered nonprofit professional society founded in 1984 that promotes psychosocial care for people affected by cancer worldwide. It serves psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, nurses, and other mental health professionals specializing in cancer care, operating through an IPOS Federation of 36+ national psycho-oncology societies spanning 40+ countries with a combined estimated membership of 2,500+. The organization maintains offices in Toronto, Canada and New York, USA, and is led by a Board of Directors with no parent company or external ownership.

IPOS's core offerings include an annual World Congress conference, the peer-reviewed Journal of Psychosocial Oncology Research and Practice (JPORP), a Multilingual Core Curriculum in Psycho-Oncology delivered in 10 languages, the ECHO tele-education program, webcasts, the M.A.C. Scale psychometric assessment tool, the IPOS Standard of Quality Cancer Care framework, and continuing-education and graduate-level training programs in Canada, the USA, and Spain. Federated national societies — including APOS (USA), BPOS (UK), NVPO (Netherlands), SWEDPOS (Sweden), Swiss Society of Psycho-Oncology, Korean Psycho-Oncology Society, Taiwan Psycho-Oncology Society, and others — act as both member-recruitment channels and local program operators. Special interest groups (ECPP, FORwards, Survivorship, E-Health) and named awards such as the Andrea Patenaude Scholarship round out the programmatic portfolio.

Revenue is generated from membership dues across tiered classifications, World Congress registration fees, continuing-education and training course fees, donations, and website advertising. The go-to-market motion is community-led: members are recruited through the website, federated societies, the World Congress, and content marketing via the journal, newsletters, and an active social media presence across Facebook, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, and Bluesky. Marketing and distribution are anchored in the federation network, which functions as a referral and local-affiliate channel in each country.

Name

International Psycho-Oncology Society

Legal name

International Psycho-Oncology Society

Website

https://ipos-society.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS) is a Toronto-based nonprofit professional society, founded in 1984, that promotes psychosocial cancer care worldwide through a federation of 36+ national societies, an annual World Congress, peer-reviewed journal, multilingual curriculum, and continuing-education programs for oncology mental-health professionals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: IPOS generates revenue through membership dues with various classification tiers, offering benefits including access to publications, resources, networking, and professional development opportunities.
2. World Congress Registration: Annual World Congress provides continuing education and conference registration fees as a revenue stream.
3. Courses and Training: Continuing education and graduate-level training programs offered for professional development.
4. Donations: The organization accepts donations to support its mission of promoting global excellence in psychosocial cancer care.
5. Advertising: Advertising opportunities on the IPOS website and publications.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

IPOS is a global nonprofit professional society that delivers psycho-oncology education, training, publications, and networking to cancer care professionals. Its core offerings include tiered individual and organizational membership, the annual World Congress, the peer-reviewed IPOS Journal of Psychosocial Oncology Research and Practice, and a Multilingual Core Curriculum in Psycho-oncology offered in 10 languages. The society also operates the IPOS Federation, a network of national psycho-oncology societies across 40+ countries, and supports special interest groups, awards, and the IPOS Standard of Quality Cancer Care.

Product overview

The International Psycho-Oncology Society (IPOS) operates as a professional membership organization rather than a technology company. Its core offerings include an annual World Congress conference, the peer-reviewed IPOS Journal (Journal of Psychosocial Oncology Research and Practice), and a Multilingual Core Curriculum in Psycho-oncology available in 10 languages. Additional offerings include webcasts, the M.A.C. Scale assessment tool, ECHO program for tele-education, professional courses and training programs (Continuing Education and Graduate Level Training), the IPOS Standard of Quality Cancer Care guidelines, and patient/family resources. The society also maintains the IPOS Federation, a global network of 30+ national psycho-oncology societies. IPOS is a professional society supporting research, education, and clinical practice in the psychosocial aspects of cancer care.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• World Congress Annual international conference bringing together psycho-oncology professionals to share research, education, and best practices in psychosocial cancer care, with paid registration.
• Multilingual Core Curriculum in Psycho-oncology Online lectures and educational materials in multiple languages providing foundational training in psycho-oncology for clinicians and researchers.
• IPOS Journal (Journal of Psychosocial Oncology Research and Practice) Peer-reviewed academic journal publishing research on psychosocial oncology and cancer care.
• Webcasts Recorded educational presentations and lectures on psycho-oncology topics available for professional development.
• M.A.C. Scale A psychometric assessment tool for measuring psychological or psychosocial outcomes in cancer patients.
• ECHO Program Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO) program providing tele-education and mentorship for psycho-oncology professionals.
• IPOS Standard of Quality Cancer Care Quality standards framework for psychosocial care in cancer treatment that member organizations and individuals can endorse.
• Courses/Training (Continuing Education & Graduate Level Training) Professional development programs and graduate-level training opportunities in psycho-oncology, with offerings in Canada, USA, and Spain.
• IPOS Membership Tiered individual and organizational membership providing access to publications, resources, networking, and professional development opportunities for psycho-oncology professionals worldwide.

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAPOS is the US federated society of IPOS, representing over 500 members including psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, nurses, and other psycho-oncology professionals. Founded in 1986, APOS hosts an annual conference and publishes a quarterly newsletter.
• British Psychosocial Oncology Society (BPOS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBPOS is the UK federated society of IPOS with 118 members, founded in 1983. Members include nurses, physicians, psychologists, palliative medicine specialists, public health professionals, and social workers.
• Netherlands Dutch Society of Psychosocial Oncology (NVPO)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNVPO is the Dutch federated society with 450 members, primarily psychologists (42%), researchers (13%), and social workers (14%).
• Swiss Society of Psycho OncologymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwiss society with 240 members including nurses (25%), psychologists (25%), physicians (12%), and social workers (10%).
• Svensk förening för psykosocial onkologi och rehabilitering (SWEDPOS)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwedish society with 270 members representing multi-professional expertise in cancer rehabilitation, founded in 2007.
• Korean Psycho-Oncology SocietymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKorean society with 76 members including psychiatrists (47%), nurses (20%), psychologists (13%), founded in 2005. Publishes the Korean Journal of Psycho-Oncology.
• Taiwan Psycho-Oncology SocietymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTaiwan society with 167 members, founded in 2009. Hosts annual Maurer Conference.
• Ukrainian Psycho-oncology Association (UPOA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUkrainian society founded in 2019 and joined IPOS in 2020 with 36 members, predominantly psychologists (>90%). Active during the war in Ukraine, providing cancer resources.
• Psycho-Oncology Society of Nigeria (POSON)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNigerian society with 100 members including psychologists (24%), students (19%), nurses (13%), founded in 2021.
• Polish Psychooncology SocietymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPolish society with 200 members, predominantly psychologists (80%), founded in 1993.
• Romanian Association for Services and Communication in Oncology (APSCO)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRomanian society with 80 members, founded in 2014. Publishes Clinical Practice Standards and Guidelines.
• Turkish Psycho-Oncological AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTurkish society with 46 members supporting the treatment progress and scientific processes related to psychological problems of cancer patients.
• Peruvian Society of Psycho-Oncology (SPPO)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeruvian society with 17 members, founded in 2006 and joined IPOS in 2019. Primarily psychologists dedicated to psycho-oncology.
• Psychosocial Oncology New Zealand (PONZ)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew Zealand society with 120 members, founded in 2001. Provides free membership to registered health professionals.
• Slovenian Association of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative CareminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSlovenian society with 15 members, all psychologists, founded in 2011.
• Sociedad Espanola de Psiconcologia (SEPO)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpanish society with 60 members, predominantly psychologists (>90%), founded in 1997. Hosts conferences every two years.
• Psychosocial Oncology Association Lithuania (POA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLithuanian society with 40 members, predominantly psychologists (56%).

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• British Psychosocial Oncology Society (BPOS): IPOS's UK federated society with 118 members, founded in 1983. Operates the same multidisciplinary psycho-oncology model at a national level, sharing membership crossover.
• Union for International Cancer Control (UICC): Global federation of cancer-fighting organizations spanning 170+ countries. Closely analogous in operating model (membership federation, global congress, advocacy, capacity building) at a broader oncology scope.
• Society for Integrative Oncology (SIO): International professional society focused on integrative oncology, including psychosocial supportive care. Comparable in multidisciplinary society structure, annual meetings, and peer-reviewed publications.
• Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC): Global multidisciplinary organization focused on supportive care in cancer, including psychosocial aspects. Closely comparable in mission, global society structure, and annual congress model.
• American Psychosocial Oncology Society (APOS): IPOS's US federated society with 500+ members, hosting annual conferences and publishing a quarterly newsletter. Operates the same membership-society model in a single (largest) geography and is a direct downstream channel for IPOS.

Others

• World Psychiatric Association (WPA): Global psychiatric professional society with 140+ member societies and a similar federation model. Analogous organizational structure to IPOS, addressing the psychiatrist portion of IPOS's membership (e.g., Korean society is 47% psychiatrists).
• International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP): Global professional society with federated national chapters, peer-reviewed journal, and educational programs. Operationally and structurally analogous to IPOS as a multinational specialty society in a closely related discipline.

Broad incumbents

• National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN): US-based alliance of leading cancer centers that publishes widely adopted clinical practice guidelines including psychosocial care standards. Comparable as a standards-setting body whose guidelines compete with or complement IPOS's Standard of Quality Cancer Care.
• European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO): Leading European professional society for medical oncology with broader scope than IPOS but overlapping audience. ESMO is significantly larger and resourced, representing the kind of scale IPOS could face competition from in education and guidelines.
• American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO): The world's largest oncology professional society with global reach, journals, and guidelines. Operates at much greater scale than IPOS but competes for the same multidisciplinary audience and influences psychosocial care standards within oncology.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/follow
• Facebookfacebook.com/IPOSPsychoOncol
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/international-psycho-oncology-society-ipos-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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