This project aims to build capacity for clinical cancer research in Kenya through a year-long training fellowship at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust. The primary focus is to gain hands-on experience in the setup, conduct, and auditing of clinical trials, and to leverage this knowledge to reinforce the Clinical Trial Unit at the applicant’s home institution, the Kenyatta University Teaching Research and Referral Hospital, considered the largest public hospital in Kenya for cancer patients, offering specialized cancer care.

Through this training, the fellow, Dr Caroline Tonio, one of Kenya’s youngest oncologists, will shadow one of Europe’s leading upper gastrointestinal oncology teams, participate in real-time trial operations, and build collaborative networks with academic and industry partners. The ultimate goal is to enable the home hospital to attract international trials, ultimately offering access to novel cancer therapies, and evolving into a regional hub for clinical research, particularly for oesophageal cancers.