The SIOP PARC Committee is pleased to announce that Dr. Aneso Mohammed Abrahim has been awarded the 2026 PARC Early Career Award, made possible through the generous support from the Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research and the NaiKong and Irene Cheung Family.

Despite major improvements in the survival of children with Wilms tumour worldwide, outcomes in many low-resource settings remain poor, due largely to modifiable health system and treatment-related factors. Building on the achievements of CANCaRe Africa, the Wilms Africa Phase II study, and the Zero Abandonment initiative, this project aims to identify the factors contributing to treatment failure among children with Wilms tumour in Ethiopia and generate evidence to improve future care.

The study will analyse prospectively collected Wilms Africa Phase II data from the Ethiopian participating centres—Jimma University Medical Center and the University of Gondar Specialized Hospital—to identify clinical and treatment-related predictors of treatment failure. It will further examine the contribution of modifiable factors, including treatment abandonment, delays in diagnosis, interruptions in therapy, and access to surgery and radiotherapy. Through qualitative interviews with caregivers and healthcare providers, the study will also explore contextual barriers to treatment completion that are not routinely captured in existing datasets.

Beyond addressing these clinical questions, the project will assess the feasibility of strengthening routine data collection and follow-up systems, identify gaps in current data collection, and support development of a simple, context-appropriate multicentre data collection approach for future Wilms tumour research in Ethiopia. By learning from successful African collaborative initiatives and strengthening collaboration between participating centres, this project aims to build research capacity, inform targeted interventions, and contribute to better outcomes for children with Wilms tumour in Ethiopia, while supporting development of the next generation of paediatric oncology researchers.

Bio

Dr. Aneso Mohammed Abrahim is a Paediatrician and Paediatric Haematology–Oncology Fellow at Jimma University Medical Center, Ethiopia. His research focuses on improving outcomes for children with cancer through collaborative clinical research and strengthening paediatric oncology care in resource-limited settings. Through the SIOP PARC Early Career Award, he aims to build research capacity, strengthen collaboration between Ethiopian paediatric oncology centres, and improve care for children with Wilms tumour.