New partnership to enhance cancer care and mental well-being

The University Health Network’s Princess Margaret Cancer Centre (PMCC) Global Cancer Program in Toronto, Canada, and the Aga Khan University’s Cancer Centre and Brain and Mind Institute have developed a partnership to advance cancer care in the developing world. Preliminary activities involve the implementation of a Distress Assessment and Response Tool (DART) developed by Madeline Li of PMCC. This is the first partnership in Africa.​

  • ​​​​​​​The Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi (AKUHN) is establishing a psy​chosocial
    oncol​ogy unit.​

  • Distress screening for cancer patients seen at AKUHN using the Distress Assessment and Response Tool (DART) will begin in the first quarter of 2024.

  • DART has been embedded into Meditech, the patient he​​alth record system, and will be available across all AKU campuses in East Africa and Karachi once the program is officially launched.​

This partnership aligns with the four PMCC Global Cancer Program Strategy pillars of Research, knowledge mobilization, education, and program development. The project will take a decade of learning, from establishing DART as a standard of care at PMCC to implementing distress screening for cancer patients seen at Aga Khan University Hospital Nairobi (AKUHN). The implementation science approach will include training of AKUHN staff and faculty in interventions for emotional distress. It will prelude towards the establishment of a specialized service in Psychosocial Oncology to support cancer patients at AKUHN.
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PMCC separately developed DART to serve as a more thorough screening instrument for evaluating emotional distress in cancer patients. This comprehensive assessment assesses the overall well-being of cancer patients by considering their emotional distress, practical concerns, and physical symptoms. It covers aspects of a patient’s life that may not be addressed in a typical appointment or clinic visit. By evaluating patients' levels of worry and distress, doctors/clinicians can encourage patients to openly communicate about their pain and suffering and offer psychosocial assistance as part of standard cancer care.

The MOU states a wide variety of expected outcomes of the collaboration, including:

  1. Enhance and support both organizations' clinical, academic, and research opportunities.
  2. Opportunities for education and training may include Fellowship programs, staff education, and patient education, which may involve Faculty and trainee exchange visits.
  3. Other initiatives are aimed at promoting and enabling collaboration, innovation, and knowledge exchange to advance cancer care in Kenya, Canada, areas that AKU serves, and worldwide. 
  4. Exchange of scientific and scholarly research materials, publications, and other information

Roxana Sultan, former Director of Strategic Planning, and Implementation at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, worked in their private capacity as a TKN volunteer with Diana MacKay, former Global Practice Lead with the Brain and Mind Institute, to identify this initial partnership opportunity.

Mansoor Saleh, Founding Chair and Director of the Department of Hematology-Oncology and AKU Cancer Centre, and Zahra Haji, Clinical Psychologist and Associate Scientist, will lead DART at AKUHN. DART has been embedded into Meditech, the patient health record system, and will be available across all AKU campuses in East Africa and Karachi once the program is officially launched.

Additional discussions are underway between UHN and AKU to explore exciting additional strategic engagements that benefit cancer patients globally.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​