UICC awards 38 Technical Fellowships, providing invaluable training opportunities for cancer professionals from around the world

UICC is delighted to announce that the 2024 call for Technical Fellowships received 138 applications from 34 different countries this year, an increase from 80 applications in 2023, and a return to pre-pandemic levels.

38 individuals have been awarded fellowships following a competitive selection process, supported by external reviewers with expertise in the technical specialty of the individual applications. Technical Fellowship Programme Chairs provided final funding recommendations: Prof. Anil D’Cruz,  Apollo Hospitals, Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi, India, and UICC Past President (2020-2022); Dr Benider Abdellatif, Centre Mohammed VI pour le Traitement des Cancers, Casablanca; and Dr Jamal Khader, King Hussein Cancer Centre, Jordan.

The Technical Fellowships programme supports applications with a strong focus on public health. Its objective is to train health professionals in cost-effective, evidence-based cancer control strategies, tailored to the applicants’ contexts and broader health systems.

Awarded Fellows will visit in total 25 different institutions across 12 countries, spanning Africa, Asia, the Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, and North America.

In 2024, UICC translated the programme into Spanish for applicants based in Spanish-speaking Latin America. This resulted in 11 applications received from Argentina, Cuba, Colombia, Guatemala, and Mexico,  up from four applications in 2023. Four fellowship awards went to applicants from Spanish-speaking Latin America, compared to one in 2023.

Among the awarded fellowships, Derrick Bary Abila, Uganda Cancer Institute will visit St Jude Children's Research Hospital in the US.

“I will apply the best practices learned from St Jude Children's Research Hospital in implementing a programme and research aimed at improving the outcomes and quality of life of childhood cancer survivors in Uganda.”
– Derrick Bary Abila, Uganda Cancer Institute

UICC is also pleased to report that 37 applications were received from countries in Africa, with 46% of awarded fellowships supporting individuals from countries in the Francophone Africa region. This region was previously underserved; however, the translation of the programme into French and the launch of the Bourses pour l’Afrique Francophone in 2017 has made a significant difference in numbers of applications received.

In collaboration with, and through funding received from the Fellowships programme partners, National Cancer Centre Korea in Seoul and Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto, nine Fellows were specifically awarded fellowships to visit these comprehensive cancer centres in 2024.

Through the long-term support from the Prevent Cancer Foundation, another Fellowships programme partner, UICC will be providing further support to individuals working in cancer prevention and early detection in low- and middle-income countries, with seven fellowships awarded on this topic.

Overall, the 2024 fellowships will be supporting individuals to learn skills and gain knowledge across many areas of cancer control, including cancer treatment, pathology, palliative care, geriatric oncology, and survivorship.

"We are delighted that the Technical Fellowships have attracted interest from such a diverse range of countries this year, with increased applications from Latin America, following the introduction of the opportunity to apply in Spanish. The selected fellowships will not only serve to support the development of individuals’ skills and knowledge, but hold significant potential to drive impactful cancer control initiatives within the Fellows' home institutions and countries."
– Sally Donaldson, Fellowships and Grants Manager, UICC