Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose!

by Vikramjit S Kanwar, Co-Chair of the SIOP GHN Partnerships WG

“Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose!” is the French for the well-known saying “the more things change, the more they remain the same!” The SIOP Global Health Network (GHN) Partnerships Working Group is no exception, even as it goes through a transition in leadership, with Nita Radhakrishnan (India) and Korede Akindele (Nigeria) stepping in as the Co-Chairs from January 2023. Formerly titled the “Twinning Collaboration and Support Working Group”, the WG members voted to change this to the more accurate and crisper “Partnerships Working Group”. 

While the term “twinning” has long been in use, it was also felt that this limited relationships to those between institutions in a high income and low-middle income country (LMIC), as discussed elsewhere. The change in the WG’s name does not affect the goals of the WG which remain clear-cut: to foster and support partnerships between institutions/individuals to provide better quality care for children with cancer in LMICs and to learn best practices from established partnerships. 

What does the GHN Partnerships WG do? 

• Recognizing that partnerships are often initiated by a local champion, it provides a forum that anyone working with childhood cancer in LMICs can approach for assistance. 
• The Co-Chairs jokingly refer to themselves as “matchmakers”, ensuring that institutions/individuals who come together have realistic and congruent expectations.
• It creates awareness of best practices to avoid the common errors that can happen in any relationship, and manage any “road bumps” that are encountered. 
• It meets once a month. 
• It is now working on a Social Media strategy to be more responsive to members in fulfilling all these expectations. 

CancerPOINTE previously provided solid support in communications, and we are fortunate that SIOP Global Health Network's Leadership continue to actively support our efforts. 

There are 390+ members in the WG from 79 countries, and we welcome new members who have an interest in contributing to the WG. To join the WG, please go to your Profile on the SIOP Website and update it to select your program preferences.

Vikramjit Kanwar is the Chief of Pediatric Oncology at HBCH Varanasi, India, which sees over 600 new children annually. He is Professor Emeritus, Dept. of Pediatrics, Albany Medical College, NY where from 2007 to 2017 he was COG institutional Principal Investigator, and served on various COG committees, including the Executive Committee. While most of his time is now committed to Pediatric Oncology care in India, he is Associate Editor for Pediatric Hematology Oncology Journal (Elsevier), continues to publish and pursue clinical research, and represents Asia on the SIOP Advocacy Committee.