The Middle East Cancer Consortium (MECC) is a regional initiative for cancer research and treatment. Established in 1996, MECC members include the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

, the

Palestinian Authority The Palestinian Authority (PA), officially known as the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), is the Fatah-controlled government body that exercises partial civil control over the Palestinian enclaves in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, ...

, and

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. MECC aims to reduce the incidence and impact of cancer in the Middle East region through the solicitation and support of collaborative research and regional education. Its motto is: "Respect all people, collaborate in fighting human suffering, and help build a bridge for better understanding among all."

Leadership

The executive director of MECC is

Michael Silbermann Michael Silbermann () is an Israeli Oral and maxillofacial surgery, maxillofacial surgeon and health educator. He is currently the executive director of the Middle East Cancer Consortium. Background Silbermann was born on January 19, 1935, in t ...

History

MECC was established through an official agreement of the ministries of health of its six member states in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

. It has launched and sustained academic-based medical programs that bring together scientists, academicians and clinical professionals from its member countries, joined by medical personnel from many other countries in the Middle East. Initially, MECC established a successful Middle Eastern Network of Cancer Registry Centers, involving medical professionals of the participating countries as part of a US

National Cancer Institute The National Cancer Institute (NCI) coordinates the United States National Cancer Program and is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is one of eleven agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ...

initiative. The project began with the establishment of a regional network of cancer registries documenting the incidence of various cancers and stage of disease at diagnosis. From the start, the work in the region was based on collaborative efforts, consisting of training courses, workshops, and educational conferences.

Achievements

MECC's achievements include: * Establishing a baseline of information on

palliative care Palliative care (from Latin root "to cloak") is an interdisciplinary medical care-giving approach aimed at optimizing quality of life and mitigating or reducing suffering among people with serious, complex, and often terminal illnesses. Man ...

services in its member countries, examining barriers to the delivery of palliative care that might exist, and promoting solutions. * Initiating supplementary education and training in various formats, fellowships, and clinical exchanges, which have led to regional-scale palliative care projects. * Initiation of palliative care programs in many Middle Eastern countries.

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.cancer.gov/aboutnci/organization/global-health/research/mecc Cancer organizations based in Israel