Triage Cancer

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
455132661
IRS 990 coverage
2016–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2015, Form 990-N 2013
Location
Malibu, CA, USA
Phone
4242584628
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Human Service Organizations

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,331,139
Expenses
$1,800,229
Assets
$1,155,806
Liabilities
$16,007

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

11 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JOANNA DORAN (CEO)
  • SORAYA TABIBI AGUIRRE (PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • JOANNA DORAN (CEO): $197,105 total reported compensation
  • MONICA BRYANT (CMO): $192,946 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Triage cancer is a national, nonprofit organization that provides free education on legal and practical issues that may impact individuals diagnosed with cancer and their caregivers, through events, materials, and resources. The legal & financial navigation program offers one-on-one help with issues such as work, health and disability insurance, finances, and estate planning. Triage health, a program of triage cancer, provides free education on the legal and practical issues related to navigating a chronic or serious medical condition.

What it reported doing in 2025

Triage cancer is a national, nonprofit organization that provides free education on legal and practical issues that may impact individuals diagnosed with cancer and their caregivers, through events, materials, and resources. Triage cancer also offers triage health, a program that provides free education on legal and practical issues to help people with a chronic or serious medical condition navigate health care, through events, materials, and resources. In 2025, more than 1.4 million people were reached through our educational materials, websites, blogs, and podcasts. Additionally, from 2012-2025, we provided more than 569,702 people with legal and practical knowledge through 1,815 online and in-person educational events held in all 50 states, dc, guam, puerto rico, and canada. In 2025, our legal financial & navigation program provided 2,035 individuals diagnosed with cancer and other chronic or serious medical conditions, caregivers, advocates, and health care professionals with free one-on-one help in the areas of health insurance, disability insurance, employment, finances, medical decision-making, estate planning, and more. The goal of these navigation services is to explain options, provide accurate information, and empower people to take next steps. We help people find their way - or navigate - through the legal, financial, and practical barriers that they may face after diagnosis. During 2025, triage cancer hosted 27 educational events for patients, caregivers, health care professionals, community health workers, and advocates on practical and legal issues, thereby mitigating financial toxicity, and improving their health outcomes and quality of life. Triage cancer also participated in more than 241 additional educational events hosted by organizational partners and professional associations. Triage cancer developed new educational materials and resources throughout the year, include blogs, articles, quick guides, practical guides, animated videos, state-specific resources, and podcast episodes. Triage cancer distributed more than 603,000 educational materials across the country in 2025. Cancerfinances.org is an online toolkit to help people manage finances after a cancer diagnosis. Triage cancer also engages in policy analysis, thought leadership, and advocacy to inform patient-centered reforms and promote sustainable, equitable healthcare systems that better meet the needs of people living with chronic or serious medical conditions and their caregivers.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 81% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 89
  • Transparency & Controls: 71
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 19
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 100%; rating input score 100
  • Program expense ratio: 87.6%; rating input score 88
  • Fundraising efficiency: $11.55 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 2 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 33
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 81.8%; rating input score 82; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -35.2%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.64; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 21.7%; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 22.8% per year; rating input score 100; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 21.3% per year; rating input score 100; 84th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 25.7% per year; rating input score 100; 86th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 100% of revenue deployed · 87.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 11 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $197K · 11 people listed · 2 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 28 of 29 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2016 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 2 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 40/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 3/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 31/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 14/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 57/100.