On World Cancer Day, 4 February 2026, the world comes together for one purpose: to improve cancer care—everywhere.
Oncothon 2026: 24 Hours to Improve Cancer Care is a global, 24-hour digital telethon organized by OncoDaily in collaboration with the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC). It is designed to mobilize worldwide attention, leadership, and funding to strengthen cancer control across health systems—particularly where the gaps are greatest.
For 24 continuous hours, global health leaders, clinicians, researchers, policymakers, patient advocates, and industry partners will convene across time zones to confront the most urgent challenges in cancer care and spotlight scalable solutions. This edition follows OncoThon 2024 and OncoThon 2025, continuing a growing global effort in cancer care. Discussions will span the full cancer continuum—from early detection and diagnosis to treatment access, workforce development, and health system infrastructure.
Despite scientific progress, millions of people worldwide still lack access to timely diagnosis, quality treatment, and essential cancer services. Oncothon 2026 exists to close that gap—by converting global awareness into tangible investment.
Funds raised during Oncothon 2026 will directly support UICC member organizations in strengthening the continuum of oncology care, including:Pathology and diagnostic capacity; Cancer and donor registries and health information systems; Workforce education and training; People-centred cancer care models; Access to essential medicines and life-saving technologies; Every contribution fuels practical, locally driven solutions that improve outcomes and build sustainable cancer systems.
Oncothon 2026 serves as a launchpad—amplifying the work of UICC members and enabling them to scale impact nationally and regionally. The result: stronger health systems, smarter investment, and better cancer care for millions of people worldwide.
For 24 hours, the world’s attention turns to cancer care.
Oncothon: 24 Hours to Improve Cancer Care
SPEAKERS
| Images | Name |
|---|---|
 | HRH Princess Dina Mired of JordanThe Patron of the International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP) Honorary President of the EORTC Research Fund Honorary Ambassador of Harvard Global Health Win-Win Initiative Her Royal Highness is the Past President of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) Former Director-General of the King Hussein Cancer Foundation. |
 | HE Zainab Shinkafi Bagudu (Nigeria)
UICC President-Elect of 2024-2026Founder and CEO, Medicaid Cancer Foundation |
 | HE Prof. Evis Sala (Albania)Minister of Health and Social Welfare of Albania |
 | HE Prof. Valentina Prevolnik Rupel (Slovenia)
Minister of Health, Slovenia |
 | Alberto Costa (Italy)
Chief Executive Officer, European School of Oncology |
 | Abdikani Mohamed Jeylani (Somalia)NCD Cancer Focal Person |
 | Alex Mutombo Baleka (Congo)Chief Executive Officer, Congo Cancer Foundation |
 | Alexander Roediger (Switzerland)Associate Vice President, Global Oncology Policy , Merck & Co., Inc. |
 | Alexandra Müller (Germany)Medical Director, SAFER Ukraine |
 | Annet Nakaganda (Uganda)Director of Research, Innovation, and Education |
 | Allison O'Neill (USA)
Pediatric Oncology physician-scientist, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute |
 | Andreas Charalambous (Cyprus)
Chair, Department of Nursing, |
 | Andrew Spiegel (USA)
Chief Executive Office, Global Colon Cancer Association |
 | Ahmed Elzawawy (Egypt)Chair, Win-Win Initiative Co-founder and Chair, Board of Directors, Global Oncology -Implementing Science program (GOIS) Founder, President, ICEDOC & ICEDOC’s Experts in Cancer Without Borders Past President of AORTIC ( African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer) Co-founder and Co-President, SEMCO |
 | Akira Nakagawara (Japan)
Chairman of the Executive Council of the Asian Pacific Hematology and Oncology Group (APHOG) |
 | Aseema Das (India)Professor,Department of Pathology & Lab Medicine All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Guwahati |
 | Benda Kithaka (Kenya)Consultant and Technical Advisor, Health Advocacy & Communications Founder and Executive Director, KILELE Health Association Convener Secretariat Lead, African Cervical Health Alliance (ACHA) |
 | Carlos Rodriguez-Galindo (USA)Member, St. Jude Faculty Executive Vice President, Chair, Department of Global Pediatric Medicine Director, St. Jude Global Co-Associate Director, Outreach, Comprehensive Cancer Center Four Stars of Chicago Endowed Chair in International Pediatric Outreach |
 | Anjee Davis (USA)
CEO, Fight Colorectal Cancer |
 | Biniyam Tefera Deressa (Ethiopia)Clinical Oncologist, Associate Professor, Adama Hospital Medical College UICC Young Leader, 2023-24 Executive Director, Bridge the Gap Ethiopia |
 | Andre Ilbawi (USA)
Technical Lead for Cancer Control, World Health Organization (WHO) |
 | Asem Mansour (Jordan)Chief Executive Officer/Director General, King Hussein Cancer Center Board Member, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) |
 | Clifford Hudis (USA)Chief Executive Officer, American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)Association for Clinical Oncology |
 | Cary Adams (Switzerland)
Chief Executive Officer, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) |
 | Carolina Goic Boroevic (Chile)
Executive Director, Center for Cancer Prevention and Control (CECAN), Chile |
 | Cesare Spadoni (Italy)
|
 | Ching-Tien Peng (Taiwan)Professor of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology China Medical University Children’s Hospital (CMUCH) Board Member, Taiwan Childhood Cancer Foundation Executive Board Member, Taiwan Society of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology SIOP Asia Ambassador Council Member, Asia-Pacific Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis Former President, Taiwan Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis Former Superintendent of CMUCH |
 | Christopher Jackson (New Zealand)Co-lead, Cancer National Clinical NetworkBoard Member, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) |
 | CS Pramesh (India)
Board Member for the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) |
 | Girish Chinnaswamy (India)
Professor (Pediatric Oncology), Department of Medical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital |
 | Daiming Fan (China)President, World Association for Integrative Oncology(WAIO) President, Asian Oncology Society(AOS) President, China Anti-Cancer Association (CACA) |
 | Deanna B. van Gestel (USA)CEO, Vaniam Group LLC Founder, Women Leaders In Oncology |
 | Darien Laird (Switzerland)
Executive Director, Global Coalition for Radiotherapy |
 | Eduardo L. Cazap (Argentina)President & Founder, Latin-American & Caribbean Society of Medical Oncology (SLACOM) CoChair, RINC-SLACOM Past President, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) Emeritus Professor, Latin-American School of Oncology (ELO) Global Oncology Patron, Ecancer Ambassador, UICC Summit & Congress Founder, SELAC |
 | David Kerr (UK)Professor of Cancer Medicine, University of Oxford Board Member, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) |
 | Ilya Tsimafeyeu (Russia)Director of the Bureau for Cancer Research (BUCARE) |
 | Edmond Tapsoba (Burkina Faso)Football Player President and Founder, Edmond Tapsoba Foundation |
 | Dilyara Kaidarova (Kazakhstan)President, Kazakhstan Cancer Society (KazCS) Active member of The National Academy of Sciences of The Republic of Kazakhstan First Vice-Rector Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University |
 | Elena Risteska (Macedonia)Singer, songwriter Founder of ERA COSMETICS |
 | Erica Barnell (USA)Chief Medical & Science Officer, Co-founder, Geneoscopy |
 | Emily Barsito (Kenya)Head of Directorate: Strategy, Planning, Partnerships and Resource Mobilization, National Cancer Institute of Kenya |
 | Ishu Kataria (India)Independent Public Health Consultant Senior Lecturer, Institute of Cancer Policy, King's College London Board Member, NCD Alliance |
 | Erika Ruiz García (Mexico)Chief Academic Officer, Gastrointestinal Medical Oncologist Chief of Translational Medicine Laboratory |
 | Fadlo R Khuri (Lebanon)President of the American University of Beirut |
 | Eric Bouffet (Canada)Director, Paediatric Neuro-Oncology Program at The Hospital for Sick Children Vice President, French African Group of Paediatric Oncology (GFAOP) Member of the Board of Director, UICC Chair, My Child Matters Expert Committee |
 | Gevorg Tamamyan (Armenia)
|
 | Jenny Seligmann (UK)
Professor of Gastrointestinal Oncology, University of Leeds |
 | Judith Mwansa-Kambafwile (South Africa)
Senior Epidemiologist, National Cancer RegistryA Division of the National Health Laboratory Service Researcher, School of Public Health, University of Witwatersrand |
 | Herdee Gloriane C. Luna (Philippines)Executive Action Team, Oncology Manager, Philippine Cancer Society Chair, External Affairs Committee, Philippine Society of Medical Oncology Past President, Philippine Society of Oncologists |
 | Gilberto Lopes (USA)
Chief of the Medical Oncology Division, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer CenterBoard Member, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) Chair, ATOM Coalition Editor-in-Chief emeritus, JCO Global Oncology |
 | Hesham Elghazaly (Egypt)Professor of Clinical Oncology, Ain Shams University |
 | Gonzalo López Cuevas (Mexico)
Treasurer of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) |
 | Guillermo Chantada (Argentina)
Past President, International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP) |
 | Hadi Mohamad Abu Rasheed (Qatar)
Scientific Advisor, Head of the Professional Development and Scientific Research Department, Qatar Cancer Society |
 | Hana Chaar Choueib (Lebanon)General Manager, Children's Cancer Center Lebanon (CCCL) Member of the Board of Directors, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) |
 | Hiba Al-Tarrah (Saudi Arabia)Director of Quality Improvement, Consultant Pediatric Hematologist/Oncologist, and Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Program Director, King Fahad Specialist Hospital |
 | Jasmine Kamboj (USA)Medical Oncologist and Hematologist, Mayo Clinic |
 | Ikram Eseghir (Morocco)Founder and President, NABD-BC2 |
 | Ishtar Espejo (Spain)CEO of Fundación Aladina |
 | Jacques Thevenon (USA)Global Medical and Patient Affairs Oncology Director, Servier |
 | Islam Belaribi (Algeria)Founder & President of Hope Dose Foundation |
 | Jayasree Iyer (The Netherlands)CEO, Access to Medicine Foundation |
 | Jean-Yves Blay (France)President, UNICANCER, French Federation of Comprehensive Cancer Centres, General Director, Centre Léon Bérard in Lyon |
 | Jennifer Buell (USA)
Chairman, Executive Council, and Director, Agenus President and CEO, MiNK Therapeutics |
 | Julie R. Gralow (USA)
Executive Vice President and Chief Medical OfficerAmerican Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Association for Clinical Oncology |
 | Kathleen Schmeler (USA)
Associate Vice President, Global Oncology, Cancer NetworkBoard Member for the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) |
 | Khaled Ghanem (Syria)
Medical Director, BASMA Pediatrics Oncology Unit, Damascus |
 | Krystal Barter (Australia)
CEO, Humanise Health |
 | Kudakwashe Simba (Namibia)
Independent Clinical Haematologist, Namibia |
 | Michael Sullivan (Australia)Paediatric Oncologist and Professor of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne,Co-Director, SIOP-St Jude ARIA Global Childhood Caner Guideline Collaboration, Past President SIOP Oceania and SIOP Global Health Network |
 | Larry Norton (USA)Senior Vice President, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center ASCO Past President |
 | Naana Akyaa Assante (Ghana)
Founder and CEO, Embrace Society and Isabella HealthCare Services |
 | Olubukola Ayodele (UK)Consultant Medical Oncologist, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust |
 | Nazik Hammad (Canada)
Professor, Division of Hematology-OncologySt. Michael’s Hospital, University of Toronto |
 | Naseer Shamma (Iraq)
Iraqi musician and oud player |
 | Lawrence Faulkner (Italy)Medical Director, Cure2Children Foundation, Florence-Italy, and Sankalp India Foundation, Bangalore-India Consultant, DKMS Group, Tübingen-Germany Chair, Outreach Subcommittee, Pediatric Diseases Working Party - European Blood and Marrow Transplantation Group |
 | Nagashree Seetharamu (India)
Associate Professor of Medicine, Donald and Barbara Zucker School of MedicineDirector of Thoracic and Head and Neck Medical Oncology, Northwell Health |
 | Leslie Lehmann (USA)Director, Clinical Stem Cell Transplantation Program Medical Director, International Hematology/Oncology/BMT |
 | Loizos Loizou (Cyprus)SIOP Europe Ambassador for Children with Cancer Professor at Medical School of University of Nicosia |
 | Mahmoud Hammad (Egypt)Chair, Education and Training SIOP Africa Professor of Pediatric Hem/Onc & Stem Cell Transplantation National Cancer Institute, Cairo University |
 | Penilla Gunther (Sweden)President, European Patient Safety Foundation (EUPSF) Member, EU Cancer Mission Board at the European Commission |
 | Mane Gizhlaryan (Armenia)Pediatric Hematologist-Oncologist, Stem Cell Transplant Specialist Yeolyan Hematology and Oncology Center, MH |
 | Matti Aapro (Switzerland)President, Sharing Progress in Cancer Care (SPCC) Past-President of the European Cancer Organisation (ECO) Member of the Board of Directors, Genolier Cancer Center (Switzerland) |
 | Salha Bujassoum Al-Bader (Qatar)
Chairperson, Department of Medical Oncology and Palliative Care MedicineNational Center for Cancer Care & Research (NCCCR) – Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) President, Qatar Scientific Oncology Innovation and Networking Society (Q-SOINS) |
 | Maria de San Martin (Argentina)Executive Director, Donde Quiero Estar Foundation |
 | Marion Saville (Australia)Executive Director, Australian Centre for the Prevention of Cervical Cancer |
 | Oliver Bogler (USA)CEO, Night Science Institute |
 | Nelli Bejanyan (USA)
Senior Member, Program Leader, Blood and Marrow TransplantationSection Head, Leukemia/Myeloid – Department of BMT-CI, Moffitt Cancer Center Professor of Oncologic Sciences, University of South Florida |
 | Maite Gorostegui (Spain)Chair, SIOP Global Mapping Programme |
 | Rashmi Dalvi (India)
Chair, SIOP Advocacy CommitteeSr Consultant Pediatric Hematologist Oncologist Professor & Head, Dept of Pediatrics, Bombay Hospital Institute of Medical Sciences Continental President, SIOP Asia (2018-2021) |
 | Manette Le Grange (France)
Corporate Social Responsibility Lead, Servier’s ICONIC Initiative |
 | Miriam Mutebi (Kenya)Breast Surgical Oncologist, Assistant Professor, Department of Surgery at the Aga Khan University Hospital |
 | Neil Ranasinghe (UK)
Lead Technical Author at London Stock ExchangeParent of a childhood cancer survivor |
 | Nicolas DeVito (USA)Assistant Professor, Division of Medical Oncology, Department of Medicine Gastrointestinal Malignancies, Cancer Immunology and Immunotherapy Duke Cancer Institute, Duke University Medical Center |
 | Paco Arango (Spain)President and Founder, Fundación Aladina Director and CEO, Producciones CALCON |
 | Petros Grivas (USA)Clinical Director of the GU Cancer Program, University of Washington |
 | Rakesh Jalali (India)
Medical Director, Apollo Proton Cancer Centre (APCC)Professor and Head, Dept of Radiation Oncology Senior Consultant & Lead, Neuro Oncology Cancer Management Team (CMT) Chair, Senior Advisory Council, Indian Society of Neuro Oncology (ISNO) President-Elect, Asian Society for Neuro Oncology (ASNO) President, Immuno-Oncology Society of India (IOSI) |
 | Ricardo Garcia (USA)
Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Member of the Board of Directors, OncoHeroes Biosciences |
 | Uddiptya Goswami (India)
Consultant Medical Oncology and Hematology at Apollo Cancer Centre, Chennai |
 | Richard Sullivan (UK)
Director, Institute of Cancer Policy Co-Director, Centre for Conflict and Health Research at King's College London |
 | Rob Pieters (The Netherlands)
President, International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP) Chief Maxima International, Executive Committee, Princess Maxima Center for Pediatric Oncology |
 | Robert P. Gale (USA)
Emmy award-winning hematologist, Editor-in-chief of Leukemia |
 | Scott Howard (USA)Deputy Director, Yeolyan Hematology/Oncology Center, Armenia Global Development Officer, Hospital Sant Joan de Deu Barcelona, Spain CEO, Resonance |
 | Stephen D. Nimer (USA)Director, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Executive Dean for research, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine |
 | Yan Liu (China)Chief Medical Officer, Yantai Dongcheng Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd |
 | Shushan Hovsepyan (Armenia)
Editor-in-Chief, OncoDaily Medical JournalCo-Chair SIOP GHN Research and Innovation working group Innovation and Development Director, Immune Oncology Research Institute Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Hematology and Pediatric Oncology, Yerevan State Medical University Senior VP of P53 Inc. (OncoDaily, CancerWorld) |
 | Sushmita Sen (India)Global Medical Scientific Alliances of Oncology and Hematology, Roche |
 | Tezer Kutluk (Turkey)
Chairman, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Oncology, Hacettepe UniversityFaculty of Medicine and Cancer Institute Past-President of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) Past-President of the European Cancer Leagues (ECL) |
 | Todd Harper (Australia)
Director, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC)CEO, Cancer Council Victoria Chair, NCD Alliance Grant Oversight Sub-Committee |
 | Ulrika Årehed Kågström (Sweden)
President, Union for International Cancer Control (UICC)Secretary General, Swedish Cancer Society/Cancerfonden Member of the Swedish Government’s Life Science Advisory Group Board Member, NCU (Nordic Cancer Union) |
 | Valerie Buhagiar (Canada)Maltese-Canadian actress and film director |
 | Vania Wisdom (UK)
Senior Executive Editor, THE LANCET |
 | Vicki Durston (Australia)Director of Policy and Advocacy, Breast Cancer Network Australia (BCNA) |
 | Yehoda Martei (USA)Assistant Professor of Medicine, Hematology - Oncology Division, University of Pennsylvania |