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Rubagumya F, Carson L, Mushonga M, Manirakiza A, Murenzi G, Abdihamid O, Athman A, Mungo C, Booth C, Hammad N. An analysis of the African cancer research ecosystem: tackling disparities. BMJ Glob Health 2023; 8:bmjgh-2022-011338. [PMID: 36792229 PMCID: PMC9933677 DOI: 10.1136/bmjgh-2022-011338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Accepted: 12/30/2022] [Indexed: 02/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Disparities in cancer research persist around the world. This is especially true in global health research, where high-income countries (HICs) continue to set global health priorities further creating several imbalances in how research is conducted in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Cancer research disparities in Africa can be attributed to a vicious cycle of challenges in the research ecosystem ranging from who funds research, where research is conducted, who conducts it, what type of research is conducted and where and how it is disseminated. For example, the funding chasm between HICs and LMICs contributes to inequities and parachutism in cancer research. Breaking the current cancer research model necessitates a thorough examination of why current practices and norms exist and the identification of actionable ways to improve them. The cancer research agenda in Africa should be appropriate for the African nations and continent. Empowering African researchers and ensuring local autonomy are two critical steps in moving cancer research towards this new paradigm.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fidel Rubagumya
- Oncology, Rwanda Military Hospital, Kigali, Rwanda .,Oncology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.,Research for Development (RD Rwanda), Kigali, Rwanda.,Oncology, University of Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Laura Carson
- Oncology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
| | - Melinda Mushonga
- Oncology, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Gad Murenzi
- Oncology, Rwanda Military Hospital, Kigali, Rwanda,Research for Development (RD Rwanda), Kigali, Rwanda
| | - Omar Abdihamid
- Oncology, Garissa County Referral Hospital, Garissa, Kenya
| | - Abeid Athman
- Oncology, Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital, Mombasa, Kenya
| | - Chemtai Mungo
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA
| | | | - Nazik Hammad
- Department of Medical Oncology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
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van Heerden J, Zaghloul M, Neven A, de Rojas T, Geel J, Patte C, Balagadde-Kambugu J, Hesseling P, Tchintseme F, Bouffet E, Hessissen L. Pediatric Oncology Clinical Trials and Collaborative Research in Africa: Current Landscape and Future Perspectives. JCO Glob Oncol 2021; 6:1264-1275. [PMID: 32762563 PMCID: PMC7456323 DOI: 10.1200/go.20.00159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE Adequate clinical services have yet to be established in the majority of African countries, where childhood cancer survival rates vary from 8.1% to 30.3%. The aim of this review is to describe the landscape of pediatric oncology trials in Africa, identify challenges, and offer future opportunities for research collaborations. METHODS The study includes data from the International Pediatric Oncology Society (SIOP) global mapping survey, meta-research identifying trials in Africa in ClinicalTrials.gov, and a literature overview of publications on the subject of pediatric oncology clinical research supported by expert opinions on the current situation and challenges. RESULTS The SIOP global mapping survey received responses from 47 of 54 African countries, of which 23 have active clinical research programs. A preliminary search of ClinicalTrials.gov showed that only 105 (12.1%) of 868 African oncology studies included children and adolescents. Of these, 53 (50.5%) were interventional trials according to the registry’s classification. The small number of African trials for children and adolescents included palliative care and leukemia trials. In African oncology journals and international pediatric oncology journals, < 1% of the pediatric oncology publications come from Africa. Services and research were strengthened by international collaboration. National studies focused on clinical needs, local challenges, or interventional priorities. Both the literature review and the expert opinions highlight the need to expand clinical research in Africa, despite ongoing regional instability and lack of resources. CONCLUSION While a low number of pediatric clinical treatment trials are open to African children and adolescents, clinical research of high quality is being done in Africa. Several initiatives are stimulating the development of the research capacity across the continent, which should increase the publication output.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaques van Heerden
- Department of Pediatric Haematology and Oncology, Antwerp University Hospital, University of Antwerp, Edegem, Belgium.,Department of Pediatric Oncology, Uganda Cancer Institute, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Mohamed Zaghloul
- Radiation Oncology Department, National Cancer Institute, Cairo University and Children's Cancer Hospital, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Anouk Neven
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Uganda Cancer Institute, Kampala, Uganda.,Statistics Department, European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Teresa de Rojas
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Uganda Cancer Institute, Kampala, Uganda.,Pediatric OncoGenomics Unit, Pediatric Oncology-Hematology Department, Children's University Hospital Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jennifer Geel
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Division of Pediatric Haematology and Oncology, Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Catherine Patte
- Franco-African Pediatric Oncology Group and Gustave Roussy Institute, Villejuif, France
| | | | - Peter Hesseling
- Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Tygerberg Childrens' Hospital, University of Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch, South Africa
| | | | - Eric Bouffet
- Pediatric Oncology, The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Laila Hessissen
- Pediatric Haematology and Oncology Center, University Mohamed V. Rabat, Rabat, Morocco
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Powell RA, Harding R, Namisango E, Katabira E, Gwyther L, Radbruch L, Murray SA, El-Ansary M, Leng M, Ajayi IO, Blanchard C, Kariuki H, Kasirye I, Namukwaya E, Gafer N, Casarett D, Atieno M, Mwangi-Powell FN. Palliative care research in Africa: consensus building for a prioritized agenda. J Pain Symptom Manage 2014; 47:315-24. [PMID: 23870840 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2013.03.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2013] [Revised: 03/20/2013] [Accepted: 03/29/2013] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT Palliative care research in Africa is in its relative infancy, with dedicated financial support extremely limited. Therefore, setting research priorities to optimize use of limited resources is imperative. OBJECTIVES To develop a prioritized research agenda for palliative care in Africa. METHODS We used a two-stage process involving palliative care professionals and researchers: 1) generation of an initial topic list at a consultative workshop of experts and 2) prioritization of that list using a consensus development process, the nominal group technique. RESULTS Phase 1: 41 topics were generated across five groups, with several topics nominated in more than one group. Phase 2: 16 topics and three broad thematic areas were identified. The two most prioritized topics within each of the three themes were the following: Theme 1: patient, family, and volunteers-1) care outcomes and the impact of palliative care as perceived by patients and caregivers and 2) palliative care needs of children; Theme 2: health providers-1) impact of palliative care training on care and practice and 2) integration of palliative care and antiretroviral therapy services; and Theme 3: health systems-1) palliative care needs assessments at the micro-, meso-, and macro-levels and 2) integration of palliative care into health systems and educational curricula. CONCLUSION Consensus-based palliative care topics determined by the study can assist researchers in optimizing limited research capacities by focusing on these prioritized areas. Subsequent to the identification and publication of the research agenda, concrete steps will be undertaken by the African Palliative Care Research Network and other partners to help implement it.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Richard Harding
- King's College London, Department of Palliative Care, Policy and Rehabilitation, Cicely Saunders Institute, London, United Kingdom; Palliative Medicine Programme, Department of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Eve Namisango
- African Palliative Care Association, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Elly Katabira
- College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Liz Gwyther
- Division of Family Medicine, School of Public Health University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Lukas Radbruch
- Department of Palliative Medicine, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany; Palliative Care Centre, Malteser Hospital Bonn/Rhein-Sieg, Bonn, Germany
| | - Scott A Murray
- Primary Palliative Care Research Group, General Practice Section, Centre for Population Health Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Maged El-Ansary
- Anesthesia Department, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Mhoira Leng
- Makerere Palliative Care Unit, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Ike O Ajayi
- Department of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Faculty of Public Health, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria; Centre for Palliative Care, Ibadan, Nigeria
| | - Charmaine Blanchard
- Gauteng Centre of Excellence for Palliative Care, Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital and University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Helen Kariuki
- Department of Medical Physiology, University of Nairobi, Kenya
| | | | - Elizabeth Namukwaya
- Makerere Palliative Care Unit, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Nahla Gafer
- Palliative Care Unit, Radiation and Isotope Centre, Khartoum, Sudan
| | - David Casarett
- Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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