Without access to subspecialty training, physicians in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are unequipped to treat the high volume of patients presenting with cancer, who need subspecialized care for the prevention and treatment of cervical cancer and other gynecologic malignancies. With rising rates of cancer in LMICs, there is a critical need to train and educate local physicians to address this challenge.
Lameck Chinula, MBBS, MMED, an Associate Professor of obstetrics and gynecology, recently graduated from the IGCS Gynecologic Oncology Fellowship Training Program, a comprehensive two-year education and training program designed for regions around the world that do not currently have formal training in gynecologic oncology. He is the first from Malawi and joins graduated IGCS fellows from over 17 countries.
“I am excited about this milestone and to be part of an effort to soon support build training and capacity building that will ensure that Malawi has enough gynecologic oncologists to serve the women in the country and beyond.”
Chinula directs obstetrics and gynecology at UNC Project Malawi, a project site founded and managed by the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases (IGHID). He is also site leader for IGHID’s Clinical Research Site in Malawi–one of four sites in an internationally recognized Clinical Trials Unit focused on the search for safe and effective therapies for HIV infection and other diseases–and serves as the Project’s associate scientific director.
“I especially thank my mentors, Professors Groesbeck Parham and Michael Hicks, and IGCS leadership, Mary Eiken, Kathleen Schmeler, and Thomas Randall, for believing in me.
“I’m also deeply indebted to my ob/gyn colleagues in Malawi for their support, including Drs. Grace Chiudzu, Priscilla Phiri-Mwanza, and Luis Gadama. And I’m grateful to UNC Project Malawi leadership, Dr. Jeffrey Stringer, Director of Global Women’s Health, and Prof. Genevieve Neal-Perry, UNC Chair for the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, for their unwavering support and for promoting career growth.”
The IGCS featured Dr. Chinula’s visit to UNC Hospitals in May 2024, where he joined the UNC gynecologic oncology team and observed gynecologic oncology surgeries, visited the chemotherapy clinic and radiation oncology clinic, and attended conferences with Dr. Linda Van Le, Dr. Olivia Lara and the nurses and fellows at Chapel Hill.
Dr. Chinula completed his medical training at the University of Malawi College of Medicine and residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. He is a former trainee of the Fogarty AIDS International Training and Research Program, a Gilead, AORTIC ACLI participant, and member of the NCI AIDS Malignancy Consortium. Chinula is also an adjunct faculty at the Kamuzu University of Health Sciences (formerly the University of Malawi College of Medicine) Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and serves on several local and international technical advisory groups including the Malawi Immunization Technical Advisory Group and Malawi Cervical Cancer Steering Committee. His research interests are HIV prevention and cervical cancer control, and his projects have been funded by NIH, USAID and the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Established in 1987, the International Gynecologic Cancer Society (IGCS) unites interdisciplinary members of the gynecologic cancer care team including gynecologic oncologists, radiation oncologists, medical oncologists, pathologists, allied health providers, and other clinicians and researchers who devote their professional lives to gynecologic oncology research and patient care. IGCS has a mission to enhance the care of those affected by gynecologic cancers worldwide through education and training and public awareness.