Isabel Mestres shared on LinkedIn:

“The City Cancer Challenge is no longer a dream ; it is real proof of the power of collective impact and locally led initiatives.

The city of Kumasi, Ghana mobilized 25 public and private local and national institutions, 446 health professionals, and 53 patients to develop 9 contextualized solutions and 20 outputs to improve access to cancer care for the city and the region.

Yesterday, I had the honor of celebrating THEIR achievements with them. I am sharing just a few examples to keep this post short:

1. Improved the quality, accuracy and timely diagnosis and staging of cancer patients through information management systems, capacity development, upgrade of the pathology equipment and the operationalization of a nuclear medicine unit reaching the Ashanti region and neighbouring countries Burkina, Faso, and Togo.
2. Upskilled workforce in the city, including 45 surgeons benefiting from capacity development interventions to enhance surgical skills to provide better care.
3. Increased referral to specialized care for childhood cancer cases (from 1% to 25%) contributed to a higher likelihood of cure.

Building on the incredible progress achieved, we announced our commitment to expand our support to reach further impact. Exciting times ahead!

Congratulations to all the local stakeholders and the C/Can local team Jaliu Abubakari, Fred Kwame Awittor, and Sophie Bussmann-Kemdjo for an incredible journey!”

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Source: Isabel Mestres/LinkedIn

Isabel Mestres is the CEO of the City Cancer Challenge (C/Can), previously being the Director of Global Public Affairs. She also led initiatives in membership and partnership development at the International Union for Cancer Control. Mestres’ strategic sense positions her to propel C/Can forward, advancing its mission of enhancing cancer care accessibility in low- and middle-income nations.