Category: non-communicable disease

In the U.S., cancer diagnosis often involves costly biopsies and tests. In the south African country of Malawi, where the average annual income is around $300, patients can rarely afford such procedures — yet accurate diagnoses remain essential. To help, staff of the long-standing UNC Project Malawi Cancer Program are...

Palliative care improves the quality of life for patients (adults and children) with life-threatening illness. It prevents and relieves suffering through the early identification and correct assessment and treatment of pain and other problems, whether physical, psychosocial or spiritual. Early delivery of palliative care can also reduce unnecessary hospital admissions...

Globally, the World Health Organization reports at least 2.2 billion people have a vision impairment. Many of those affected live in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), but they also live in rural areas of the U.S. and North Carolina. Encouragingly, more than 90% of people with vision impairment have a...

In Sub-Saharan Africa, deaths occur in 5-10% of people living with HIV during the first year after initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART), and the causes for these early deaths are not clear. Matthew Painschab, MD, member of the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, and an assistant professor of hematology,...

The Malawi Government has a strong commitment to caring for its citizens, often sending patients abroad, to countries such as India, for cardiac procedures that aren’t available at home. But these opportunities are limited, compared to the needs of the country’s population of 21 million, and follow a process much...

Chemtai Mungo, MD, MPH, and Lisa Rahangdale, MD, MPH, presented at the American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology (ASCCP) meeting on May 4, focusing on the latest advancements in topical therapies for cervical precancer treatment in the U.S. and around the world. Dr. Mungo and Dr. Rahangdale, both obstetricians/gynecologists...

Globally, mental health disorders rank as the greatest cause of disability and a leading contributor to the burden of disease. While the U.S. may struggle to meet the need for quality mental healthcare, treatment in most low- and middle-income (LMIC) countries – where 80% of those with mental illness live...

Linda Van Le, MD, the Leonard Palumbo Distinguished Professor in the Division of Gyn Oncology, served as moderator for the Consortium of Universities for Global Health’s Annual Conference in Los Angeles, March 7-10. Van Le gave two presentations, focused on elimination of cervical cancer as a public health problem and the need for cancer...

UNC researchers in cervical cancer prevention, members of the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases and Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, filled the agenda at a recent scientific session for the EUROGIN International Multidisciplinary HPV Conference in Stockholm, Sweden.       EUROGIN’s U.S. Chair Jennifer S. Smith, PhD, professor of...

A new study published in Lancet-Global Health introduces the results of a five-year trial in Malawi that tested two implementation strategies for integrating mental health with general medical care. Led by UNC Institute for Global Health members Bradley Gaynes and Brian Pence, the study includes a cost-effectiveness analysis that will help inform scale-up decisions about...

During Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, Chemtai Mungo, MD, MPH, FACOG, a member of the Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases and an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology, was interviewed by Cancer Nursing Today, describing the role nurses can play in prevention and treatment. “Nurses interface with patients—women and men—throughout...

Hematological malignancies, including leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma, are cancers that affect the blood, bone marrow, and lymphatic system. In Malawi, these cancers account for a significant proportion of cancer cases, and their treatment requires a multidisciplinary approach. To answer this need, UNC Project Malawi, Baylor Global Hope and Kamuzu Central...