22^nd Shaukat Khanum Cancer Symposium (SKCS) symposium was scheduled for November 3 - 5, 2023, as hybrid meeting. SKCS is accredited by the American Association of Continuing Medical Education® (AACME) for 36.75 category I CME points. SKCS is one of the premier oncology meetings of our region organized by Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Pakistan. The event attracts a large number of delegates, every year, from across the country and overseas, and a world-class faculty of experts. In 2023, the symposium had a representation from over 13 countries with more than 100 guest speakers. The multidisciplinary scientific program covers the broad spectrum of oncology care from bench to bedside.

LIST OF TOPICS AND SPEAKERS

Prof Iftikhar Qayyum chaired the session.

Bonny Baker and Salvia Zeeshan shared the vision of The Global Health Network (TGHN). TGHN enables easier, faster, and better research in the world’s most challenging settings. Speakers from TGHN shared their experience of transferring knowledge and exchanging methods, processes and research findings between diseases, regions and organizations. The Global Health Network, with over 750,000 members and 4 million courses delivered, is a successful and growing online hub comprised of broad range of research communities for different health research groups and cross-cutting health topics. It is built for the research and wider health community by researchers and public health practitioners themselves. It is a trusted source of quality information, education and research tools. TGHN teams works closely with researchers and study teams, both independently and as part of consortia-led projects to enhance local research capacity.  Bonny shared how she has led the coordination of research capacity work packages across multiple consortia-based programmes spanning Africa and Latin America.

Salvia, in her current role with TGHN, is coordinating the collaborations and regional team activities for research capacity development and knowledge sharing in the Asia region. She introduced different communities of practice, training resources, toolkits and Global Health Research Process Map, and how these can provide step-by-step guidance and support for planning successful global health research projects

Vilma shared her insight in implementation science and health systems research in chronic diseases and cancer. She briefed the role of epidemiological and intervention studies in health promotion, and chronic disease prevention and management

In the panel discussion, Dr. Mariam Hassan and Dr. Faisal Khan gave a broad overview of research efforts in Pakistan, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses. They highlighted the centers of excellence engaged in research in Pakistan and the impact they are making. Panel agreed, to a collaborative and participatory approach, focusing on developing and implementing need-based and contextualized educational activities (courses and mentoring) to cultivate professional skills for carrying out and leading high-quality locally led research.