July 2025

We kicked off the 2nd half of 2025 with several milestone activities across our global projects. We've had the great privilege to work with excellent research and policy scholars in Nigeria, tackling the growing burden of vaccine-preventable cancers (liver and cervical cancers), using innovative solutions ranging from the use of mobile ringtones for HBV vaccine reminder messaging for expecting mothers, to the use of a community-embedded strategy to disseminate research evidence for policy makers, researchers, and community members to drive informed policymaking. We are eager to see our scholars pilot and drive tangible improvements to the research and policy landscapes of vaccine-preventable cancers in Nigeria. Stay tuned!

The 4 Communities By Communities team kicked off the two-week Change Challenge Capacity Building event on Monday, July 7. The first week of this event was a virtual bootcamp for the Change Scholars to learn more about Dissemination and Implementation (D&I) science strategies to prepare them for the in-person bootcamp in Lagos, Nigeria. The 2025 Change Scholar cohort includes 22 individuals from Abuja, Lagos, Osun, Oyo and Taraba, Nigeria, joining the bootcamp as public health experts, biomedical scientists, and professors.

The virtual bootcamp began with a welcome from Dr. Juliet before diving in to the sessions led by implementation science and public health experts, all dedicated to advancing their shared goal: to reduce the burden of vaccine-preventable cancers in Nigeria through participatory implementation science.

Each of the sessions throughout the bootcamp emphasized the critical role of early career researchers in developing creative, community-centered solutions to prevent cervical and liver cancers through HPV and Hepatitis B vaccination strategies, provided training to continue strengthening the Scholars' research and D&I skills, and encouraged the Scholars to leverage implementation science and remain curious, community-focused, and committed to sustainable impact. 

Key themes that came from the virtual bootcamp included: 

Following the virtual bootcamp, the 22 Scholars gathered in Lagos for the week-long in-person bootcamp. The training started with an overview of the project and further introduction to D&I. Across the week, the participants benefited from a series of lectures on the burden of HBV and HPV in Nigeria, challenges and opportunities for equitable cancer prevention, and the role of community participation, communication, and leadership in improving health outcomes. 

During the sessions, facilitators emphasized the 4Es of cancer control - Engagement, Equity, Empathy, and Evolvement - and discussed the ethics of participation. Each day, the teams were able to work together and with their mentors to further refine their ideas before making their final pitches to the judges on the final day of bootcamp.

After each team pitched their ideas, the winners were announced and awarded seed funding to begin their strategy implementation. We can't wait to support these teams through mentorship and follow them over the next year as they turn their ideas into a reality!

On July 15, six finalist teams of research and policymaking scholars from across Nigeria started a 48-hour Policy4Cancer Designathon, spanning four days, culminating in an in-person activity from July 21 to 22 in Abuja. This designathon was organized by 4 Communities by Communities, the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, and Brooks Insights, with representation from the Federal Ministry of Health, and offered a platform for the finalists to refine further their ideas focused on bridging the gap between vaccine-preventable cancer research evidence and policymaking in Nigeria. 

The finalist teams and a brief description of their innovative interventions are listed below. 

Each team pitched their intervention to a panel of five judges who scored the ideas for their innovation, inclusivity, actionable solutions, and sustainability to address the research-policy gap. The winners and their funds are listed below, and we are so proud of each of the teams for their passion and commitment to a healthier, vaccine-preventable, cancer-free future! 

As part of the ongoing clinical trial phrase of the ACCESS project, The 4 Girls & Women team has started implementing the Mother-Daughter Day for Step 3 sites. On July 26, 2025, the event was successfully held in Abuja, Nigeria. 

During this event, participants were checked in, followed by a brief health education session facilitated Dr. Maureen Umeh. The session focus on the benefits of cancer screening, prevention, and HPV vaccination. Dr. Umeh provided a demonstration on how to use the Evalyn brush for self-collection to the mothers. A total of 30 women were screened for cervical cancer and 33 daughters received the vaccine. 

The 4 Youth By Youth team is in the final days of preparation before the recruitment phase approaches! As part of the preparation, the 4YBY leadership will be conducting a training in Lagos, Nigeria, for the sustainability teams supporting the study, and will provide an overview of the S-ITEST study and prepare teams for the upcoming recruitment and enrollment phase. This training will also focus on building strong teamwork skills within each sustainability team and review strategies for maintaining continuous engagement with participants once recruitment begins.

Stay tuned for more updates in the August edition of our newsletter! 

The LIGHT team was thrilled to receive 114 submissions, and after going through a rigorous judging process, the winning entries were determined and will have their work published in the next edition of the LIGHT Magazine! 

Artists, authors, and poets from all over the world responded to the open call question asking, "Using art, letters, stories, and poetry, tell us: How might we build public health systems that are trustworthy? How might we foster peace and strengthen community in the face of chaos?" 

The winners are listed below: 

The LIGHT Institute is proud to congratulate our partner, Elvin Geng, MD, MPH, professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases, on his recent appointment as editor-in-chief of Implementation Science Communications! 

Implementation Science Communications publishes "research relevant to the systematic study of approaches to foster uptake of evidence-based practices and policies that affect health care delivery and health outcomes, in clinical, organizational, or policy contexts1." Geng is an expert in the field of implementation science, focusing his research on evidence-based interventions in the public health response to HIV and other communicable and non-communicable diseases. 

As editor-in-chief, Geng aims to make the journal “investigator-centered," prioritizing timely, constructive editorial experiences and to balance conceptual innovation with real-world impact. His vision for the journal includes fostering interdisciplinary dialogue and encouraging submissions that move beyond disease-specific silos. He encourages the journal’s readers — especially those entering and early in their careers — to stay curious, stay committed, and pursue what is exciting, because implementation science is a field where passion, rigor, and relevance intersect. 

Geng is the director of WashU’s Center for Dissemination and Implementation, one of the leading centers globally for implementation research, and co-director of the NIH-funded Midwest Developmental Center for AIDS Research alongside Juliet Iwelunmor, PhD. Additionally, Geng serves in advisory roles to the World Health Organization (as member of the Guideline Review Committee as well as the HIV Guideline Development Group). He also maintains editorial positions at PLOS Medicine and the Journal of the International AIDS Society.

^{1: https://implementationsciencecomms.biomedcentral.com/about} 

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