The BRECON Project

Oral cancer (OC) is one of the leading cancers in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA)  The understanding of the genetic profile of this cancer is very crucial to the development of clinical and public health interventions enhancing its prevention and control.

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We are currently carrying out a preliminary study assessing the exome sequencing and copy number variation in OC samples from Nigerians. 

 

Unfortunately, data on population-based genetic profiling of OC is very sparse, and several populations, especially in SSA, are under-represented due to very limited genetic research capacity among oral oncologists in SSA. The urgent need to address this disease burden in SSA birthed the joint establishment of the International Head and Neck Cancer Working Group (IHNCWG) in 2022 by enthusiastic researchers at Teesside University (TU) and in Africa.

 

One of the major objectives of this group is the BRECON Project—this project aims to develop research capacity on OC socio-genomics and bioinformatics through the establishment of inter-institutional partnerships between TU and notable organisations in the UK and SSA.

 

The IHNCWG has received a seedcorn grant (£8500) from TU to bring together a network of experts to initiate partnership development. Through the MRC partnership grant, the UK will play a leading role in enhancing capacity development to combat the global burden of OC particularly in SSA. The grant will enable bringing together multidisciplinary stakeholders from the UK and Africa to ideate, develop and implement strategies that will ultimately contribute to the achievement of the UN SDGs in SSA, particularly SDG3.

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We will need partners, they can reach us via our email then we can schedule a meet and greet to see how our objectives align with each other.