Educating the Next Generation of
Intimacy-Informed Professionals
The Cancer & Intimacy Institute exists to train and certify medical and helping professionals in a new standard of care — one that includes the body, desire, intimacy, and partner support as essential to recovery.
We believe that healing from cancer is not only about surviving—it’s about reclaiming connection, agency, identity, and access to pleasure. These are not luxuries; they are vital aspects of whole-person healing. Yet these are the very aspects most often ignored in medical settings.
We’re here to change that.
We exist to ensure that every practitioner who supports people with cancer—whether in healthcare, mental health, coaching, education, or beyond—has the knowledge and language to address intimacy, sexuality, and body image concerns with confidence and compassion.
WELCOME!
I’m Claire Rumore, an erotic educator, intimacy specialist, and cancer survivor. Long before I founded this Institute, my work centered on helping people navigate intimacy, embodiment, and connection especially during times of transition. Cancer clarified just how urgently these dimensions need to be held within health care and healing—not as afterthoughts, but as part of how people survive and rebuild their lives.
I created the Cancer & Intimacy Institute as a place where this depth of care could be studied, taught, and carried forward by professionals and organizations committed to more humane models of healing.
Our Mission
Our mission is to create systemic change in how cancer care is delivered by equipping organizations, care teams, and helping professionals to address the emotional, relational, and sexual dimensions of healing with confidence, compassion, and cultural sensitivity, recognizing that these areas are integral to healing and human dignity.
We are the vanguard of whole-person, whole-body, whole-heart cancer care.
Our Vision
We envision a world where:
- Every oncology clinic and organization is trauma-informed, intimacy-aware, and pleasure-literate
- Survivors are supported not just in surviving, but in thriving—sexually, relationally, emotionally, and beyond.
- Partners are seen as part of the care team, and their needs are also honored
- Medical providers and helping professionals are trained to have courageous, compassionate conversations about sex, touch, identity, and more with patients, survivors, and their partners.
- Cultural narratives about illness, aging, sexuality, and bodies are rewritten to make space for healing, empowerment, and pleasure in its many forms
We SErve
Healthcare providers and helping professionals who want to offer more holistic, whole-patient, intimacy-informed care.
These include:
- Mental health, social work, and other helping professionals seeking additional skills, certifications, and CE accredited training
- Educators and researchers committed to deepening understanding around intimacy, connection, and human experience, especially in the context of illness
- Sexuality and intimacy educators and practitioners expanding their scope and skillset to confidently serve clients and partners impacted by cancer
- Spiritual directors, chaplains, and faith-based caregivers desiring more skill and sensitivity with tending to the emotional, spiritual, and relational dimensions of survivorship
Our Approach
Our curriculum blends evidence-informed frameworks from sexual health, psychology, and oncology with somatic and spiritual dimensions of care.
Our trainings emphasize:
- A “Start With Self” approach that helps practitioners recognize and transform their own biases, blindspots, and judgments around the themes they’ll be supporting clients with.
- Trauma-informed tools and practices
- Whole-person and identity-inclusive care strategies
- Communication and consent protocols as well as pleasure-forward and body-positive guidance
- Restorative approaches to erotic grief, body image challenges, and libido listening
- Applied frameworks such as the Wheel of Consent, Erotic Blueprints, and Urban Tantra
And so much more!
We'll begin enrollment in late 2026
Join the launch list to be notified when the Institute’s first offerings open.
Signature Course
Series
Our Signature Course Series offers foundational trainings that introduce the key concepts, skills, and practices of intimacy-informed cancer care. Each course blends evidence-based learning with practical tools to support an immediate increase in comfort and confidence when working with patients and survivors.
COMING LATE 2026
Professional Certification Program
Certified Cancer & Intimacy Practitioner (CCIP)
A comprehensive certification pathway for coaches, therapists, counselors, educators, healthcare providers, and others who wish to specialize in a more comprehensive intimacy and sexuality support for cancer patients, survivors, and their partners.
COMING LATE 2026
Ongoing Skills Development (Includes CE & CEU Eligible)
Short courses, lectures, and experiential workshops for mental health, healthcare professionals, and others who wish to expand their competence in intimacy-informed cancer care. You’ll learn practical tools and grounded guidance for addressing the emotional, sexual, and relational aspects of healing.
COMING FALL 2026
Ongoing Skills Development (Includes CE & CEU Eligible)
Short courses, lectures, and experiential workshops for mental health, healthcare professionals, and others who wish to expand their competence in intimacy-informed cancer care.
COMING LATE 2026/2027
Professional Development Community
Ongoing mentorship, cross-disciplinary learning, and a growing network of certified practitioners committed to integrating pleasure-aware, trauma-informed, and relationally grounded care.
Partnership Opportunities
While the Institute trains and certifies individuals, we also collaborate with organizations seeking to make our trainings available to their teams.
Institutional partnerships are managed through our consulting branch, CancerEVOLVE.
How We’re Growing
The Cancer and Intimacy Institute is growing into a global hub of expertise, training, and resources. Our upcoming expansion includes:
- CE-accredited trainings for clinicians, therapists, social workers, and coaches
- A Certified Cancer & Intimacy Practitioner (CIIP) and Certified Illness & Intimacy Practitioner (CIIP) program for those who wish to specialize in this work
- A multilingual library of on-demand courses, guides, and tools for patients, partners, and professionals
- Licensing programs and white-label trainings for hospitals, clinics, and cancer centers
- A curated referral network of vetted practitioners and programs
- Research collaborations and institutional partnerships that measure impact and advance change
- Thought leadership via keynotes, publications, interviews (podcast, blog, tv, etc), and other media
Stay Connected!
Join our professional community of change-makers, educators, and care providers advancing the future of intimacy-informed cancer care.
Receive occasional updates on:
- Upcoming trainings & certification launches
- Continuing education opportunities
- Research collaborations, findings, and speaking events
- Resources for your trauma-informed, pleasure-aware practice
- Early enrollment invitations for future programs
Together, we’re redefining what whole-person healing looks like — one practitioner, one conversation, one courageous act of care at a time.
Subscribe today to stay informed and inspired as we roll out our offerings and build the next generation of intimacy-informed professionals.