More than 35 healthcare experts, policymakers and specialists from 11 countries across four continents will be hosted on a virtual platform for the second edition of the Cervical Cancer Forum on January 27 and 28.
Titled ‘Accelerating Action on HPV and Cervical Cancer’, the forum is being organised by the UAE-based civil society organisation Friends of Cancer Patients (FOCP)under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Wife of His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah, and Founder and Patron of FOCP.
Representatives from national and regional coalitions on cervical cancer, global stakeholders and experts will unite at the forum to take forward the emirate’s leading efforts in reducing the needless suffering from a type of cancer that is both preventable and curable,and chart plans to increase access to services to prevent, manage and ultimately eliminate cervical cancer.
Even though cervical cancer is a preventable disease, according to World Health Organization (WHO) studies, without decisive action at both national and global levels, the annual number of new cases of cervical cancer is expected to increase to 700, 000 between by 2030, while the annual number of deaths is projected to rise to 400,000.
The two-day forum will witness participants lead strategic discussions and bring their unique local experiences across seven keynote addresses and panel discussions based on the following themes: ‘2021: Where are we with Cervical Cancer Elimination?’; Continuum of Care in Cervical Cancer’; Social Advocacy in Cervical Cancer’; and ‘Advances and Innovation Role in the Ecosystem of Cervical Cancer Elimination’. Through these sessions, the forum will advance Sharjah’s agenda of identifying innovative, bold and practical steps for planning, implementing and monitoring cervical cancer prevention and control services to reduce mortality rates and unblock the barriers to good health.
High-profile speakers will focus global attention on transformative policies and solutions
More than 35 speakers will be addressing the second Cervical Cancer Forum to bridge major gaps in global cervical cancer response and prevention. These include, amongst several others, Her Royal Highness Princess Dina Mired of Jordan, President-elect of the. Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), HE AbdulRahman Bin Mohammed Al Owais, UAE Minister of Health and Prevention; HE Sawsan Al Jafar, Chairperson, Board of Director, FOCP; Dr Luay Shabaneh, Regional Director, United Nations Population Fund, Arab States Regional Office; Petra Tenhoope-Bender, Technical Adviser Sexual and Reproductive Health, United Nations Population Fund; Dr. Nasim Pourghazian, Technical Officer, UHC/Noncommunicable Diseases (NCD), World Health Organisation (WHO); Dr Julie Torode, Deputy CEO and Director of Advocacy and Networks, UICC; Dr. Colm O’Mahony, Consultant Physician; British Association for Sexual Health and HIV; Dr Muna Al Kuwari, Director of Specialised Care Management and Executive Vice President, UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention; Ms. Diene Keita of Guinea – Deputy Executive Director, Programme, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA); and Dr Ibtihal Fadhil, Founder and Chair, Eastern Mediterranean NCD Alliance.
Dr Sawsan Al Madhi, Director General, FOCP; Dr Shible Sahbani, Regional SRH Advisor, United Nations Population Fund, Arab States Regional Office; Dr Kamal Fahmy, Medical Officer, Vaccine Preventable Diseases and Immunisation, WHO-EMRO; Dr Ziad Mhiersi, Director, Global Health Strategies, USA; Dr Hussaub Al Rand, Assistant Undersecretary of Health Centers and Clinics Sector, UAE;and Dr Solaiman Abuserwil, Head of the National Vaccines Committee, Ministry of Health, Libya, will also share their expertise at the forum.
Other eminent experts addressing the event include Dr. Thuraia Al Rawahi, Senior Consultant Gynecological Oncologist, Royal Hospital, Oman; IliazAsruf, Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, The Netherlands; Prof. Mustapha Benhassou, Mohammed VI Centre for Cancer Treatment, Morocco; Lisa Stevens, Division Director, IAEA, Austria; Dr Khaled Al Saleh, General Secretary, Federation of Gulf Cancer Control, Kuwait; Heather White, Executive Director, Together for Health, USA; Prof. Gamal Srour, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Director for the International Islamic Center for Population Studies and Research (IICPSR), Al Azhar University, Egypt; Dr Cecilia Llave, Chair, Cervical Cancer Prevention Network, Philippines; Kate Sanger, Head of Communications and Public affairs, Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust, UK; Tamika Felder, Founder, Cervivor Org; Samir Al-Darabi, Regional Communication Advisor, UNFPA, Egypt; Dr Mona Saraiya, Medical Officer and Team Lead in Cancer Prevention and Control, CDC, USA; Dr. Hayat Sindi, Chief Advisor to the President of the Islamic Development Bank, Science, Technology and Innovation, KSA; Dr. Abdullah Abdulrahman Al-Sumait, Director General, DirectAid, Kuwait; and Anja Nitzsche, Head of Resource Mobilisation and Strategic Partnerships at the Programme of Action for Cancer Therapy, IAEA, Austria.
