Advancing opportunities for collaboration between national cancer Institute-Designated cancer centers and native nations: Building of an indigenous cancer health department.

National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer centers in the United States have played a historic part in America's health care history and are well poised to serve as collaborative partners in ensuring the future health of Indigenous Peoples. Beyond race, Indigenous Peoples are political classifications with Native Nation citizenship and land-bases who negotiate at the federal level as sovereigns. As such, Native Nations, as separate governments of the USA, trade, negotiate, and operate healthcare independently. Optimally, cancer centers with Indigenous-specific initiatives can build pathways for sovereign education collaboratives, culturally appropriate clinical care systems and sovereign-led cancer research. This article shares the journey of America's first Department of Indigenous Cancer Health at one of the nation's oldest NCI-designated cancer centers. Experiences are shared regarding Indigenous cancer research, the intertwining of Indigenous intellect with western medicine, Indigenous-focused community outreach and engagement paradigms, sovereignty in cancer education, and translational models of quality improvement, health research and Indigenous service models, including patient navigation. Development strategies are offered throughout to encourage, and challenge, existing cancer centers to create Indigenous centers, departments, collectives, and consortiums that honor Native Nations and Indigenous urban populations. By sharing these insights into the building of an inaugural Indigenous cancer health department, we aim to promote similar collaborations that can provide health opportunities, fairly and equally nationally and globally. Working together, the success of one cancer center can transcend to more cancer centers and inspire international Indigenous cancer health initiatives that support and honor Indigenous health awareness for future generations.