Press Release

Conquer Cancer Honors Early-Career Medical Professionals from Around the Globe with Awards to Support Oncology Learning

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Amanda Narod
- Conquer Cancer Honors Early-Career Medical Professionals from Around the Globe with Awards to Support Oncology Learning

Alexandria, Va. – Conquer Cancer®, the ASCO Foundation today announced the recipients of its 2019 Medical Rotation for Underrepresented Populations Awards (MSR), Resident Travel Awards for Underrepresented Populations (RTA), Long-term International Fellowship (LIFe), and International Development and Education Awards (IDEA). All four awards are designed to support the work and interest of young researchers and medical professionals and help facilitate the recruitment and retention of individuals from populations underrepresented in medicine to cancer careers.

“Quality cancer care requires a diverse global workforce that delivers personalized cancer care, tailored to individual patients, countries, regions and cultural values,” said Thomas G. Roberts Jr., MD, FASCO, Chair of the Conquer Cancer Board of Directors. “Conquer Cancer is proud to support the development of a diverse oncology workforce pipeline and provide medical professionals interested in oncology with the opportunity to connect and learn from one another.”

The MSR Award provides clinical rotations for U.S. medical students from underrepresented populations in medicine who are interested in a career in oncology and pairs them with an oncology mentor. Award recipients participate in a 4-week rotation in a variety of care and research settings. The 2019 recipients include:

  • Kaquanta Barlow, Morehouse School of Medicine
  • Dulce Barrios, SUNY Upstate Medical University
  • Jeffrey Edwards, Stanford University
  • Ista Egbeto, Tufts University School of Medicine
  • Taimy Falcon-Rodriguez, San Juan Bautista School of Medicine
  • Margaret Pichardo, Howard University
  • Pompeyo R. Quesada, Texas Tech University
  • Rosyli Reveron-Thornton, Stanford University
  • Karen Rico, University of Arizona
  • Zachary White II, University of South Alabama

The RTA provides funding for residents from underrepresented populations to attend the 2019 ASCO Annual Meeting, where recipients will get the chance to network with oncologists, attend educational sessions, and develop a deeper understanding of the oncology field.The 2019 recipients include:

  • Anghela Z. Paredes, MD, MS, The Ohio State University
  • Dario Villamar, MD, New York-Presbyterian Hospital
  • Alexander C. Jordan, MD, New York University School of Medicine
  • Amblessed Onuma, MD, The Ohio State University
  • Jonathan Macias, MD, North Shore Long Island Jewish Medical Center
  • Jacquelyne Gaddy, MD, University at Buffalo

The LIFe provides early-career oncologists in low- to middle-income countries with support and resources needed to advance their training by deepening their relationship with a mentor in the United States, Canada, or European Union. During the one-year fellowship, the recipients receive valuable training and experience, which they use to effect change in cancer care in their home country. The 2019 recipient is:

  • Kyrillus S. Shohdy, MBBCh

“Dissecting the role of co-occurring FGFR and cell cycle genomic alterations in sensitivity of urothelial carcinoma (UC) to combined FGFR- and CDK4/6-inhibition”

Home Institution: Cairo University

Sponsoring Institution: Weill Cornell Medical College

Mentor: Bishoy Faltas, MD

The IDEA connects early-career oncologists in low- and middle-income countries with oncology leaders based in Canada and the United States to establish mentoring relationships. The award includes attendance at the 2019 ASCO Annual Meeting and a post-meeting visit to the Mentor’s institution, with

the aim of developing a long-term, knowledge-sharing relationship to improve cancer care in the Mentee’s home country. The International Development and Education Award in Palliative Care (IDEA-PC) provides this same opportunity for early-career oncologists with a specific interest in palliative medicine. The 2019 IDEA recipients include:

  • Aleesha K. Adatia, MBBS, MD, Aga Khan Hospital Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania
  • Maria Alice Franzoi, MD, Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre Brazil
  • Kavitha Jain, MBBS, MS, King George's Medical University, India
  • Deepa M. Joseph, MBBS, MD, All India Institute of Medical Sciences Rishikesh, India
  • Yitbarek Mengistu Kibret, MD, Black Lion Hospital, Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia
  • Joarly Kerwick Lormil, MD, University Hospital of Mirebalais, Haiti
  • Precious T. Makondi, MBBS, Mzuzu Central Hospital, Malawi
  • Deebya Raj Mishra, MBBS, MD, B P Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Nepal
  • Peter Leonard Muhoka, MD, Muhimbili National Hospital, Tanzania
  • Hung Van Nguyen, MD, Hanoi Medical University, Vietnam
  • Kehinde S. Okunade, MBBS, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Nigeria
  • Tlotlo Bathethi Ralefala, MBBS, MD, Princess Marina Hospital, Botswana
  • Yuly Andrea Remolina Bonilla, MD, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición "Salvador Zubirán", Mexico
  • Rossana Ruiz, MD, Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Neoplasicas, Peru
  • Alexey A. Rumyantsev, MD, N.N. Blokhin National Medical Research Center of Oncology, Russian Federation
  • Marcella Marinelli Salvadori, MD, Clinica AMO - Assistencia Multidisciplinar em Oncologia, Brazil
  • Mukesh Shanthilal, MBBS, MD, Mysore Medical College and Research Institute, India
  • Kamal Raj Soti, MBBS, MD, Bhaktapur Cancer Hospital, Nepal
  • Frederic Ivan Leong Ting, MD, Philippine General Hospital, Philippines
  • Samia Yasmeen, MBBS, FCPS, Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hosp and Research Centre, Pakistan

The 2019 IDEA-PC recipients include:

  • Henriette Burger, MBBS, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
  • Arunangshu Ghoshal, MBBS, MD, Tata Memorial Hospital, India
  • Mohammad Kabir, MBBS, MPH, Hospice Bangladesh Limited, Bangladesh
  • Innocent Chidiebere Ugwu, MBBS, University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku-Ozalla, Enugu State Nigeria
  • Ana Zilic, MD, MSc, Institute for Oncology and Radiology of Serbia

Supporters

The 2019 Medical Student Rotations are supported by BB&T Charitable Fund; Bristol-Myers Squibb; Eisai Inc.; Gilead Sciences, Inc.; GlaxoSmithKline Oncology; and Takeda Oncology

The 2019 Resident Travel Award recipients are sponsored by Amgen; BB&T Charitable Fund; and Bristol-Myers Squibb

The 2019 Long-term International Fellowship is supported by Conquer Cancer®, the ASCO Foundation Mission Endowment

The 2019 International Development and Education Awards are supported by AbbVie, Inc., Northern New England Clinical Oncology Society, and Roche

The 2019 International Development and Education Award – PC is supported by Conquer Cancer®, the ASCO Foundation Mission Endowment