Muktar Abubakar: My World Cancer Congress experience – Day 1

Muktar Abubakar, Senior Special Assistant at Kebbi State Government, shared a post on LinkedIn:

“My World Cancer Congress experience – Day 1

The Medicaid Cancer Foundation team, led by Founder and the CEO HE Dr. Zainab Shinkafi-Bagudu participated in the World Cancer Congress 2024, held in Geneva, Switzerland, from September 17-19.

Organized by the UICC, the event brought together over 2,000 delegates from 120+ countries, including UICC members, researchers, healthcare professionals, and advocates to address key issues in cancer prevention, care, and global policy.

On the first day, our delegation attended the Opening Session, where speakers like UICC President Jeff Dunn, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros, and EU Commissioner Stella Kyriakides emphasized the role of partnerships and the community in cancer prevention efforts.

The opening plenary, ‘Shaping the Future: Preventing Cancer and NCDs – Advocating for Commitments at the UNHLM on NCDs in 2025,’ stressed the need for integrating cancer and NCD prevention into global policies.

Dr. Bagudu featured in a sponsored session titled ‘Bridging the Gap: Addressing Childhood Cancer Disparities Between High-Income and Low-Income Countries,’ organized by AMGEN and World Child Cancer.

She joined a panel of experts discussing disparities in childhood cancer survival rates, particularly in LMICs, highlighting the importance of early diagnosis, healthcare system strengthening, and global initiatives like the CureAll framework and WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer.

The Medicaid team also attended a plenary on addressing cancer disparities in people of African ancestry, where Dr. Bagudu presented on scalable solutions to tackle global cancer challenges. She shared insights alongside experts like Folakemi Odedina and Clayton Yates, with discussions focused on leveraging collaborations to address cancer genomics and access to precision oncology for Black populations.

Dr. Bagudu later participated in a closed-door roundtable hosted by Roche, which focused on achieving breast cancer equity in Africa.

The first day of the Congress provided invaluable opportunities for networking and learning, as well as advancing the global cancer agenda. The insights and partnerships gained will be instrumental in driving meaningful change and addressing cancer disparities, particularly for vulnerable populations.

As part of the Medicaid Cancer Foundation, I am committed to turning these discussions into actionable strategies to improve cancer outcomes in our communities.”

Source: Muktar Abubakar/LinkedIn