The Heather Cutler Foundation · Trust Centre

Trust, Privacy & Responsible AI

This centre brings together the documents that explain how the foundation uses artificial intelligence, how it handles information, and who is accountable for both — written for patients and caregivers, for partners and researchers, and for the AI assistants people use to reach our services.

Our commitment to responsible AI

Access is the point. We believe artificial intelligence can help make pancreatic cancer information, support and services easier to access.

Never at the expense of trust. Technology must never come at the expense of patient privacy, dignity, safety or trust.

People stay in charge. We use AI to help people find information and navigate available support. We maintain human oversight of consequential decisions, protect personal information, prioritize reliable sources and remain accountable for the services we provide.

The commitment is simple. Technology should make it easier to access care and support, never harder to trust it.

Our AI and data documents

The documents that explain how the foundation uses artificial intelligence, how it handles information, and who is accountable for both.

Responsible AI Policy How the foundation uses AI in its public services, what those systems are never permitted to do, and how people oversee them. Version 1Read → AI & Data Governance Framework The oversight, data classification, consent, retention and verification rules behind the foundation’s agent-facing services, prepared for partners and researchers. Version 1Read → Patient Data & Privacy Notice In plain language: what our patient-facing services collect, why, and what they deliberately never collect. Version 1Read → AI Assistant Transparency Notice What our assistant-facing services are, what they cannot do, and where a person takes over. Version 1Read → How HCF Verifies Information Our research and information standards: where information comes from, what “verified” means, and how often it is rechecked. Version 1Read → AI Agent Usage Policy The conditions for AI assistants, agents, and their developers accessing the foundation’s public services. Version 1Read →

Existing foundation documents

These documents stand on their own and are linked here, not replaced.

Privacy PolicyOpen → Terms of UseOpen → Editorial StandardsOpen → CorrectionsOpen → Governance Documents (Document Centre)Open →

Raising a concern

If you believe one of our services has given wrong information or handled information improperly, contact us at info@heathercutler.ca or 1-855-754-5045. Concerns are read by a person.

Email info@heathercutler.ca Corrections & error reporting

Status of these documents

Version 1, first published November 2, 2026. Approved for publication by the Executive Director. Formal adoption by the Board of Directors is pending.

Who this centre is for

This centre is written for patients and caregivers, for partners and researchers, and for the AI assistants people use to reach our services.

A statement from our founder on AI

I started The Heather Cutler Foundation after my mother Heather died of pancreatic cancer in May 2024. Most people who come to this site are dealing with a diagnosis, their own or someone in their family. They don't have time for wrong information, so what we put out has to be accurate.

We use AI to do a lot of the work behind this site — finding information, checking it against the source, keeping it up to date. We are a small foundation and nobody here is paid. AI is how we keep up, and I'm not going to pretend we don't use it.

But no AI system makes decisions for the foundation, and nothing goes out under our name unless a person has checked it first. If you spot an error in anything we publish, you can report it through our corrections page and we will review it.

Christopher CutlerFounder and Executive Director, The Heather Cutler Foundation