Triangular Partnership in Oncology: The Kenya-Nepal Oncology Network Project for the Control of Breast and Cervical Cancer in Kenya and Nepal

Abstract

The impending increase in cancer incidence around the world remains one of the most pressing health challenges of the 21st century. Triangular partnerships, which include at least one institution from the Global North and two or more from the Global South (North-South-South partnerships), present promising avenues to address inequities in oncology care by uniting actors in similarly resourced health care settings around a central goal. Despite this, triangular partnership remains rare in the field of oncology. Here, we present the Kenya-Nepal Oncology Network (KeNON), a novel triangular partnership for the provision of breast and cervical cancer care between institutions in Kenya, Nepal, Canada, and the United States centered around the Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare. KeNON aims to build upon existing oncology services through its four-partite model: clinical care , composed of screening and treatment services; community , designed to facilitate communication and collaboration; education , aiming to build an oncology workforce and thus sustainable systems of care; and research , evaluating optimal implementation of screening techniques and care delivery. By generating discourse among collaborators on three different continents and from varied health care settings, KeNON can address the unique challenges of providing oncology care to underserved populations through an iterative process of dialogue and improvement known as reciprocal innovation. Overall, KeNON provides a unique model of partnership for the provision of oncology care, allowing it to leverage the strengths of institutions around the world to improve breast and cervical cancer outcomes for the most vulnerable.