The George Institute for Global Health announced its first ever Annual ‘Evidence2Policy’ lecture, which would be delivered by Prof. Ian Jacobs, Vice-Chancellor, University of New South Wales (UNSW), The lecture - “The evidence base and case for action in screening and prevention for ovarian and cervical cancers” will focus on his three decade long research in the gap between evidence and global action in cervical cancer screening and is expected to provide insights for the healthcare policies in India. Professor Jacob’s expertise in the field of Women’s Cancers and his initiatives for early detection and screening of ovarian and cervical cancers could provide insights on preventing the progression of these cancers among women. This event will also be a great starting point for UNSW Sydney and The George Institute to work together with partners in India on this topic. Evidence2policy lecture will be held on 10^th December, 2018 at India Habitat Centre (New Delhi), 1 PM onwards. The Australian High Commissioner to India, Harinder Kaur Sidhu will be the Chief Guest for the occasion.

Prof. Jacobs’ lecture would be followed by a panel discussion on “Women’s cancers: A Public Health Agenda”. The panel will be chaired by Dr. Preetha Rajaraman, Health Attaché and Regional representative, South Asia, US Embassy, New Delhi and the following experts in the field of Oncology and Gynecology will participate in the discussion -

• Sanjay Gupta - Scientist, National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research,
• Neerja Bhatla, Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences
• Krithiga Shridhar, Research Scientist, Public Health Foundation of India
• Jyotsna Govil, Vice Chairman, Indian Cancer Society
• Roopa Hariprasad, Scientist, National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research

The panel is expected to discuss the screening efforts for the common cancers as part of the national programme, how women are disproportionally affected by cancers that are common to both men and women, linkages between screening initiatives and treatment options, training and capacity building of health workers in cancer screening – the learnings from the NICPR ECHO program and the potential to scale it up.

Professor Jacobs expressed his delight in participating in the event and said that the role of higher education providers is to collaborate to find solutions to the problems that people face across the globe. “As Australia’s global university, UNSW is committed to improving and transforming lives through excellence in research, outstanding education and a commitment to advancing a just society.”