Center for Global Health Equity

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About the Center

Our Mission: The Center for Global Health Equity aims to reduce global inequities in cancer prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and care.

The Center for Global Health Equity at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute envisions a world where cancer outcomes are not determined by where a person lives. Established in 2023, the Center works to centralize and enhance the Institute’s global health activities, addressing inequities in cancer prevention, care, and outcomes.

The Center for Global Health Equity focuses primarily on activities in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC) and other underserved global regions. We serve as a coordinating center – housing existing Dana-Farber global health centers and activities, while also exploring new opportunities for partnering and developing innovative programming.

The Center for Global Health Equity works across three pillars:

  • Fostering a global cadre of individuals committed to equitable cancer care and research through collaborative Education and Training opportunities
  • Improving access to, and quality of, cancer care in resource-limited settings through the development and implementation of Clinical Care Capacity Building activities
  • Producing, supporting, and promoting world-class Research that has local impact on cancer prevention and treatment in resource-limited settings

Lectures and Events

The Global Oncology Lecture Series provides a forum for global cancer researchers to present and discuss current cancer research being conducted in low- and middle-income countries. The series is co-hosted by Dana-Farber’s Center for Global Health Equity, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Penn Medicine, University of California at San Francisco’s Global Cancer Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, Harvard Chan’s Zhu Family Center for Global Cancer Prevention, and Mass General Cancer Center. This virtual series is held every other month. 

Throughout the year, our Center also offers additional in-person and virtual lectures on a wide variety of topics related to global oncology and featuring speakers from around the world.

To participate in any of these upcoming events, please email: dfci_globalhealth@dfci.harvard.edu.

Upcoming Events

Monday, December 2, 2024, 10 a.m. ET - In-person lecture (Dana 1130)
Topic: Addressing Familial Breast Cancer and BRCA
Speaker: Hikmat Abdel-Razeq, MD, Professor of Medical Oncology, CMO, Deputy Director General, King Hussein Cancer Center, Amman, Jordan

Monday, December 2, 2024, 1 - 2 p.m. ET - Virtual lecture
Topic: Global Oncology: The AMPATH Experiment
Speaker: Patrick Loehrer, Sr., MD, Distinguished professor, Indiana University; Joseph W. and Jackie J. Cusick Professor in Oncology; Director, Center of Global Oncology and Health Equity; Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center

Tuesday, December 3, 2024, 12 p.m. ET - Virtual lecture
Topic: Advancing Cancer Genetic Testing and Counseling in Africa / AORTIC North America Series
Speakers: Abiola Ibraheem, MD, University of Illinois, Chicago; Timothy R. Rebbeck, PhD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Temidayo Fadelu, MD, MPH, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Achille Manirakiza, MD, King Faisal Hospital, Rwanda

Wednesday, December 4, 2024, 11 a.m. ET - Virtual lecture
Topic: Cross-Sector Partnerships to Address Childhood Cancer Care During Humanitarian Crises / Social Impact in Humanitarianism Webinar Series
Speakers: Irini Albanti, MD, Moderator, Executive Director, Harvard Humanitarian Initiative; HRH Princess Dina Mired, Past President, Union For International Cancer Control; Roberta Ortiz, MD, Medical Officer, WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer; Rawad Rihani, MD, Pediatric Oncologist, King Hussein Cancer Center; Ahmad Bawaneh, MD, Country Director, Jordan International Medical Corps

Past Events

October 28, 2024
The Lancet Commission on Women, Power, and Cancer: A Year of Progress
Ophira Ginsberg, MD, MSc, Senior Scientific Advisor for Clinical Research, Center for Global Health, National Cancer Institute

August 26, 2024
Healing Together: Collaborative Forces in Global Pediatric Oncology
Joyce Balagadde Kambugu, MD, Head, Division of Paediatric Haematology and Oncology, Uganda Cancer Institute; SIOP Africa President

June 24, 2024
Curing Childhood Cancer and Curing Children with Cancer: Strategies to Address Global Inequities in Childhood Cancer Care and Control
Carlos Rodriguez-Galindo, MD, Executive VP, Chair, Department of Global Medicine, St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital Center

April 22, 2024
Clinical Communication and Decision-Making in Cancer Care in Diverse African Contexts: What Do We Know, Where Do We Want to Go, and How Do We Get There?
Rebecca DeBoer, MD, MA, Assistant Clinical Professor, UCSF Division of Hematology/Oncology; Medical Oncologist, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital

February 26, 2024
Global Health: Basic Principles and Lessons from the Field
Joseph Lubega, MD, MPH, CPE, Associate Director, East Africa Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Training Program, Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Center

Who We Are

Director

Timothy Rebbeck, PhD, Vincent L. Gregory, Jr. Professor of Cancer Prevention, Harvard T.H.  Chan School of Public Health; Professor, Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Steering Committee

Lori Buswell, RN, MS, Executive Director, Center for Global Cancer Medicine, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Temidayo Fadelu, MD, MPH, Staff Physician, Center for Global Cancer Medicine, Assistant Professor, Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Leslie Lehmann, MD, Clinical Director, Pediatric Stem Cell Transplant Center; Medical Director for International Hematology/Oncology/BMT at Boston Children’s Hospital

Navid Madani, PhD, Director, Science Health Education (SHE) Center; Senior Scientist, Department of Cancer Immunology and Virology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Sarah Slater, MD, Senior Physician, Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute 

Assistant Director

Jaime Mchunu, MA, Assistant Director, Center for Global Health Equity, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

What We Do

The Center for Global Health Equity brings together clinicians, researchers, faculty, fellows, students, and others at Dana-Farber who are working to address inequities and improve oncology outcomes for populations in resource-limited settings. 

These programs cut across the Center’s three pillars – education and training, research, and clinical care capacity-building:

Center for Global Health Equity Programming

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Center for Global Cancer Medicine

The Center for Global Cancer Medicine brings its mission of patient care, research, and teaching to under-resourced settings throughout the world.

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Science Health Education (SHE) Center

Focused on education and training in collaborative research and care, the SHE Center aims to empower the health care community in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) to bring about best practices.

Our Partners

Dana-Farber and Harvard Partners

External and Other International Partners

Additional Resources

Programs

Fellowships and Clerkships

Residencies and Internships

Global Cancer by the Numbers

  • In 2015, cancer services were available in less than 30% of low-income countries.
  • Only 1 in 5 low- and middle-income countries has the necessary data to drive cancer policy.
  • Approximately 70% of cancer deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries.
  • 80% of childhood cancers occur in low- and middle-income countries and the cure rate is only 20%.
  • Low- and middle-income countries have less than 5% of global health care resources.

Source: World Health Organization (WHO)