World Cancer Congress 2012: August 27-30

When international cancer control leaders gather for the UICC World Cancer Congress in Montreal this summer, Canada’s strong contributions across the cancer control spectrum will be in the spotlight.

Stakeholders from across the country including the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, federal government agencies such as the Public Health Agency of Canada, provincial cancer agencies, researchers and patient and advocacy groups are featured presenters at the Congress. They join participants from Australia, Brazil, China, India, Japan, Jordan, Russia, UK, the US, and many other nations, pursuing the Congress theme: Connecting for Global Impact.

“The Congress is an invaluable opportunity for knowledge transfer and the Canadian contribution to this dialogue will be substantial,” said Dr. Heather Bryant, Vice-President of Cancer Control for the Partnership and co-chair of the scientific program committee with Dr. David Hill of Australia. “The opportunity for Canada’s cancer control community to learn from successful approaches and evidence gathered internationally is just as vital. Cancer is a worldwide problem and the search for solutions with measurable impacts needs to be worldwide as well.”

The Congress, which is held every two years, includes plenary sessions with keynote speakers from around the world and  presentations relating to the four content areas:  prevention and early detection, cancer care and survivorship, palliation and pain control, and systems in cancer control; and a “global village” forum for networking.

“The calibre of presenters is exceptional,” said Dr. Bryant. “Across all areas of the cancer control continuum we have an impressive panel of experts sharing expertise, evidence and best practices.”

Canadians providing leadership to the congress

Aboriginal health specialist Dr. Evan Adams

Dr. Adams is the Director of the Division of Aboriginal People’s Health, UBC Faculty of Medicine as well as Aboriginal Health Physician Advisor for the BC Ministry of Health Services and the BC First Nations Health Council.

Cancer research leader Dr. Elizabeth Eisenhauer

Dr. Eisenhauer is Director, IND Program NCIC Clinical Trials Group, Chair of the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer’s Research Advisory Group and co-chair of the Canadian Cancer Research Alliance.

Cancer epidemiologist Dr. Eduardo Franco

Dr. Franco is the James McGill Professor in the Departments of Oncology and Epidemiology at Montreal’s McGill University as well as Director, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Interim Chair of the Department of Oncology at McGill.

Radiation oncologist Dr. Michel Gélinas

Dr. Gélinas is chairman and co-founder of the Quebec Cancer Foundation.

International plenary lecturers

International public health expert Sir George Alleyne

Dr. Alleyne is Director Emeritus of the PanAmerican Health Organization and Adjunct professor in the Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University.

Nobel Prize Laureate and DNA researcher Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn

Dr. Blackburn currently holds the Morris Herzstein Endowed Chair in Biology and Physiology in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of California, San Francisco.

Cancer prevention leader Dr. Graham Colditz

Dr. Colditz is the Associate Director, Prevention and Control at the Siteman Cancer Center as well as Niess-Gain Professor of Surgery, Professor of Medicine and Chief, Division of Public Health Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

Leading advocacy organizer Dr. John Seffrin

Dr. Seffrin is CEO of the American Cancer Society and past-President of the UICC.

Learn more about the Congress program. To register, please visit the registration section of the World Cancer Congress website.