Bogda Koczwara, Director of the Australian Research Centre for Cancer Survivorship, has been named a candidate for the UICC Board of Directors for the 2026–2028 term.
Based in Sydney, Australia, Prof. Koczwara is a medical oncologist, researcher, and cancer survivorship expert with more than three decades of experience spanning clinical care, research, administration, and cancer policy.
She established one of Australia’s first cancer survivorship programmes and has contributed to research on survivorship epidemiology, symptom monitoring, self-management, and patient-reported outcomes. Her work spans clinical, epidemiological, and implementation research, with nearly 300 peer-reviewed publications.
The new UICC Board will be elected by UICC full-member organisations during the 2026 UICC General Assembly, which will take place virtually on October 20, 2026. Electronic voting will open on October 13 and close at 14:30 CEST on October 20.
Bogda Koczwara’s Work in Cancer Survivorship
Prof. Koczwara grew up in Poland before moving to Australia as a teenager. She completed her medical oncology training at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, New York, before returning to Australia and contributing to the development of a comprehensive cancer centre at the hospital where she had trained as an intern.
Over the following 30 years, her career combined clinical oncology, cancer administration, and research, with an increasing focus on what happens to patients after cancer treatment.
She established one of the first dedicated cancer survivorship programmes in Australia and helped establish what became the world’s longest-running scientific meeting focused on cancer survivorship.
Her research has addressed survivorship epidemiology, symptom monitoring, self-management support, and patient-reported outcomes, with the aim of improving quality of life and long-term outcomes for people living after cancer.
In 2025, Prof. Koczwara was appointed an inaugural Director of the Australian Research Centre for Cancer Survivorship, described as the first centre of its kind globally.
Why Bogda Koczwara Is Running for the UICC Board
Prof. Koczwara said her candidacy is driven by the growing number of people living with and beyond cancer and the need to ensure survivorship becomes an integral part of cancer control.
“There are over 100 million cancer survivors worldwide, the majority in resource-limited settings.”
She highlighted the significant challenges faced by survivors in many settings, including unmanaged symptoms, financial hardship, stigma, and reliance on informal caregivers.
She said survivorship is still not adequately reflected in many national cancer control plans and that stronger policy attention is needed.
“Support for these individuals is heavily reliant on informal caregivers and is often not recognised in national cancer control plans.”
If elected, Prof. Koczwara would advocate for stronger integration of survivorship into national cancer strategies, including the use of survivorship indicators and approaches that improve access to supportive care.
Bringing Survivorship Into Global Cancer Policy
A central priority of Prof. Koczwara’s candidacy is making survivorship a more visible component of global cancer control.
She has proposed strengthening survivorship care through digital health innovation and aligning survivorship strategies with the WHO agenda on chronic disease management and multimorbidity.
These priorities closely connect with UICC’s broader focus on person-centred cancer care, health systems strengthening, partnerships, and knowledge sharing.
Prof. Koczwara has been engaged with UICC since 2016, contributing to symposia on multimorbidity and return to work after cancer and participating in online educational modules focused on survivorship.
Research, Implementation, and Patient Experience
Prof. Koczwara brings broad research expertise spanning epidemiology, population health, clinical trials, and implementation science.
Through the Australian Research Centre for Cancer Survivorship, she is developing a research strategy focused on improving outcomes for cancer survivors through population-level approaches designed to support equitable access and outcomes.
Her work also includes extensive international collaborations across different disciplines within cancer control, alongside networks involving people with lived experience.
She said these connections could help mobilise broader efforts to address gaps in survivorship care globally.
“My distinctive contribution is a genuine determination to improve health outcomes for cancer survivors globally through strategic and systematic effort.”
A Focus on Equity in Cancer Survivorship
Prof. Koczwara’s candidacy highlights the disparities faced by cancer survivors, particularly in resource-limited settings.
Her proposed approach focuses on ensuring that survivorship is considered throughout cancer planning rather than treated as an issue addressed only after treatment has ended.
This includes monitoring long-term outcomes, strengthening symptom management and self-care support, addressing financial and social challenges, and incorporating the experiences of people living with and beyond cancer into policy and research.
She also brings extensive leadership experience from professional organisations, having served as a Board Member of Cancer Council South Australia and Cancer Council Australia, President of the Clinical Oncology Society of Australia, and Chair of the Medical Oncology Group of Australia.
She has also held leadership positions within the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer and the International Cardio-Oncology Society.
Watch Prof. Bogda Koczwara’s video message outlining her experience, priorities, and vision as a candidate for the UICC Board of Directors for the 2026–2028 term.
UICC Board Elections 2026
The 2026 UICC election will determine 14 members of the Board of Directors for the 2026–2028 term.
UICC full-member organisations will vote during the virtual General Assembly on October 20, 2026, following the opening of electronic voting on October 13.
The elected Board will help guide UICC’s work in cancer prevention, treatment, survivorship, health equity, health systems strengthening, and global cancer control.
Read further on OncoDaily: Julia Ismael Named Candidate for UICC Board of Directors 2026–2028
