In May, under the SIOP Oceania umbrella, we undertook a multidisciplinary in-country visit to Port Moresby comprised of paediatric oncology, pathology, pharmacy, nursing, ophthalmology, and research representatives. The visit focused on strengthening childhood cancer care and broader paediatric health systems through partnership, workforce development, awareness, pathology support, multidisciplinary collaboration, and data systems strengthening.
After the visit, the team put together a structured report. The work is organised across eight key pillars — Advocacy, Oncology, Pathology, Pharmacy, Nursing, Awareness, Research & Data Systems, and Palliative Care. Within each pillar we have attempted to outline the local context, activities undertaken, areas of growth since previous visits, ongoing challenges, and recommendations moving forward.
One of the strongest reflections from the visit was the extraordinary commitment and resilience of our PNG colleagues, who continue striving to improve outcomes for children and families despite significant workforce and resource limitations. Across the week, we saw genuine momentum building in areas such as multidisciplinary care, nursing education, pathology strengthening, registry development, pharmacy partnerships, and culturally grounded awareness initiatives.
Several developments during this visit were particularly exciting, including:
- progression of the national childhood cancer registry,
- multidisciplinary workforce education involving nurses from eight provinces,
- strengthening pathology and pharmacy collaborations,
- engagement with the Ministry of Health, WHO, the Australian High Commission, and other national leaders,
- and the co-design of childhood cancer and retinoblastoma awareness materials with PNG families and healthcare workers, which are now progressing toward national endorsement.
Importantly, this work continues to reinforce the value of long-term partnership models grounded in local leadership, sustainability, humility, and mutual learning. We remain deeply grateful to our PNG colleagues, particularly Dr Gwenda Anga and Dr Bengy, whose leadership and persistence continue to drive meaningful progress under extraordinarily challenging conditions.
