Six Early Career Cancer Researchers Awarded African Science Grant from National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Cancer Institute (NCI) in CRDF Global Competition

CRDF Global  announced today the six early career African-based cancer researchers selected for the Beginning Investigator Grant for Catalytic Research (BIG Cat), funded by U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Cancer Institute (NCI). Each investigator will receive up to $25,000 USD for the first year for a two-year research project. CRDF Global promotes international scientific and technical collaboration through grants like this one, technical resources, training and services in more than 40 countries. The objective of peer-reviewed grant competitions is to enable cross-border collaboration and strengthen international research.
CRDF Global coordinated the peer review. The grants were awarded to:

Assucena Guisseve, Eduardo Mondlane University, Mozambique
Diana Kassaman, Aga Khan School of Nursing and Midwifery, Kenya
Viote Kayamba, University of Zambia School of Medicine, Zambia
Samuel Kirimunda, Makerere University, Uganda
Leo Masamba, Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Malawi
Mazvita Sengayi, National Laboratory Service, South Africa

The BIG Cat African science grant seeks to support exploratory data collection by African clinicians and scientists engaged in cancer research. Secondly, it encourages research that spans the cancer continuum, aimed at forming a basis for reducing the burden of cancer in Africa.
“We are grateful for the continued support of AORTIC and NCI that is opening avenues for new collaborative opportunities for U.S. and African scientists,” said Siri Oswald, CRDF Global Director of Research Partnerships. “BIG Cat helps expand the capacity for young investigators who will base their careers in their home countries and impact the world by reducing the growing burden of cancer in Africa,” said Oswald.
The Beginning Investigator Grant for Catalytic Research is providing young African scientists with the opportunity to build their capacity and advance their research,” said Edward Trimble, M.D., M.P.H., Director, National Cancer Institute Center for Global Health. “High-quality research by and for Africans is essential in the fight against cancer, and this grant promotes and furthers such research across epidemiology, prevention, detection, diagnosis, and treatment.”
African Organisation for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC) was formed in 1983 by expatriate African cancer care workers, scientists and their friends, and is dedicated to the promotion of cancer control in Africa. The U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) coordinates the U.S. National Cancer Program. This funding opportunity was created following a scientific writing workshop implemented by CRDF Global and NCI, at the 2015 AORTIC International Cancer Conference in Marrakech, Morocco. Workshop participants consisted of 30 people from Egypt, Nigeria, Ghana, Malawi, South Africa, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.
To qualify as early career, the principal investigator must be an investigator clinician or scientist who received his or her highest degree of study within the past seven years. This is third cohort of grantees supported under the BIG Cat program.