Faculty of Medicine Professor to Lead One of the World’s Largest Cancer Fighting Organizations
By
Suniya Kukaswadia
Professor Mary Gospodarowicz (Department of Radiation Oncology) has made history after being named the first-ever female – and first-ever Canadian – to lead the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC). Gospodarowicz’s appointment as President of the UICC was announced recently at the World Cancer Congress in Montreal, Quebec.
Founded in 1933, UICC is the largest cancer fighting organization of its kind, with more than 400 member organizations from around the world. The international organization’s mission is to eliminate cancer as a life-threatening disease for future generations.
A member of the University of Toronto medical faculty since 1981, Gospodarowicz has held many leadership positions in the cancer care sector, including regional vice-president of Cancer Care Ontario. She has authored more than 250 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, with her research interests including clinical trials evaluating radiation therapy in cancer treatment, image-guided precision radiotherapy, and survivorship.
One of Gospodarowicz’s main goals for the UICC is to achieve greater health equity on a global level.
“There is a huge gap between what we can achieve today and what is actually being achieved, especially in low- and middle-income countries,” she said in an interview with CBC Radio’s Metro Morning. A child with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Canada has over 90 per cent chances of cure, she said, whereas in low- and middle-income countries those chances are as low as 10 per cent.
In addition to cancer treatment, Gospodarowicz says it’s important to focus on palliative care and pain control. “There are countries in the world that have no access to morphine which means patients are dying in terrible pain,” she says.
In order to address these inequities, Gospodarowicz says it’s vital to foster connectivity—between different healthcare sectors, generations and basic, clinical and implementation sciences. The UICC is striving to make these connections happen. “All of our programs, including those on cancer registration, cervical and childhood cancer and pain relief, are about equity and connectivity. Ultimately, we want to provide a clear, trusted and aligned voice for cancer care and control around the world,” says Gospodarowicz.
