First Lady of Senegal Visits NCI
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First Lady of Senegal, Viviane Wade, and Dr. Joe Harford. |
The First Lady of Senegal, Mrs. Viviane Wade, visited NCI on January 16, 2009. Since the election of her husband, President Abdoulaye Wade, in 2002, Mrs. Wade has dedicated herself to the health and well-being of the people of Senegal. She is the president of Association Education Santé, a nongovernmental agency focusing on the needs of impoverished communities, especially those of children, in remote areas of Senegal. Mrs. Wade has also organized and participated in symposia in Africa on economic empowerment and education for women, public health issues (e.g., HIV/AIDS, malaria, malnutrition, and sickle cell anemia), and agriculture.
During her visit, Mrs. Wade toured the NIH Clinical Center, led by Dr. Lee Helman of NCI’s Center for Cancer Research, and heard presentations by representatives from NIH’s Fogarty International Center (FIC) and various NCI staff. These presentations focused on the burden of cancer in Africa, an overview of FIC and NCI, cancer control planning and screening, and affordable cervical cancer screening in Senegal. Speakers included Dr. James Herrington, director of FIC’s Division of International Relations; Dr. Joe Harford, director of NCI’s Office of International Affairs (OIA); Dr. Makeda Williams of OIA; Dr. Deidre Lawrence, Cynthia Vinson, and Dr. Stephen Taplin of NCI’s Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences; and Dr. Mark Schiffman of NCI’s Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics. Potential collaborations with NCI on cancer screening and prevention in Senegal were discussed, as Mrs. Wade’s priorities include improving clinical care, education, and health outcomes in Senegal.
