The 2024 ISSM/SMSNA Sub-Saharan Africa Training Program in Oncosexology!
Building on the 2023 program, during which sexual health education in cancer was paired with case discussions, in 2024, participants had yet another opportunity to observe examples of sexual health care as it is practiced and discuss how they might approach such care in their own settings. Five sessions offered in-depth training in how to talk to patients and partners about their sexual concerns after cancer, how to do a physical sexual health assessment, psychosexual assessment, how to teach patients to use pro-erectile aids and aids to vaginal health, how couples can navigate challenges in the recovery of sexual intimacy after cancer treatment. Sessions included lectures, case discussions and practical demonstrations of skills. The program was offered to all oncology providers (medical and radiation oncologists, urologists, nurses, psychologists, social workers, educators), patients and family members. The program is sponsored by the International Society for Sexual Medicine (ISSM), the Sexual Medicine Society of North America (SMSNA) and the Kenyan Society for Hematology and Oncology (KEHSO).
Program Committee
The sessions have been composed by the ISSM/SMSNA program committee;
Luca Incrocci is Professor of Genito-Urinary Radiotherapy and sexologist in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. He received his M.D. in 1992 at the University of Pisa, Italy, and then joined the University Hospital Rotterdam to complete residencies in the Departments of Urology and Radiation Oncology. He is actively involved in the teaching and research of fellows and students. Prof. Incrocci is a member of several scientific societies including the European Association of Urology, the European and International Societies for Sexual Medicine. Prof. Incrocci is a manuscript reviewer for a number of international journals; he is Associate Editor of the European Journal of Sexual Health and is the Past-President of the International Society for Sexual Medicine. Prof. Incrocci is the author of more than 150 peer-reviewed papers, reviews, and book chapters and has co-edited the books: Handbook of Sexual and Gender Identity Disorder and Cancer and Sexual Function.
Dr. Wittmann is an Associate Professor Emerita of Urology and Adjunct Associate Professor of Social Work. She is a lead faculty in the Brandon Prostate Cancer Survivorship Program with clinical and research interest in sexual health and quality of life in cancer survivorship. She uses mixed methods to understand issues in cancer survivorship care and to evaluate interventions designed to improve patients' and partners' outcomes. She is faculty in the Mixed Methods Research Program at the University of Michigan. She is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Sexual Medicine.
Dr. Lawrence C. Jenkins received his MD from the University of Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He finished his urology training at the University of Miami and followed that with a fellowship in Male Sexual and Reproductive Medicine at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and the Center for Male Reproductive Medicine and Microsurgery at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University in New York, NY. Dr. Jenkins practices at the Tulane University Department of Urology, as an Associate Professor, where he focuses on male sexual and reproductive medicine.
Dr. Miriam Mutebi is a Consultant Breast Surgical Oncologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the Aga Khan University Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. She is also a clinical epidemiologist and health systems researcher with a research focus on understanding barriers to access for women with cancers in Sub-Saharan Africa and in designing interventions to mitigate those barriers.
She is the President Elect of the African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC), the Chairperson for the Kenya Society of Hematology and Oncology (KESHO) and on the board of directors of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC). She is also the co-founder of the Pan African Women’s Association of Surgeons (PAWAS-www.africanwomensurgeons.org) which was developed to mentor and provide transformative leadership for women in surgery in order to improve surgical care and pathology on the continent and is part of the Kenya Association of Women Surgeons.
She is the Co-chair of the National Cancer Taskforce in Kenya, Chair of the Commonwealth Taskforce for the elimination of Cervical Cancer and a commissioner with three Lancet commissions of Women and cancer, Cancer in sub-Saharan Africa and Breast Cancer. She is currently pursuing a pilot's licence in order to extend breast care services to marginalised areas.
Philip Odiyo Ouma is currently working as Patient Support Manager at Faraja Cancer Support Trust in Nairobi and Eldoret. His passion for Psycho-Oncology began 15 years ago. Besides having a Master’s degree in Counselling Psychology, he is currently studying for a research doctoral degree at Erasmus University (Netherlands). Philip’s was selected for a Clinical Observership and training at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre in New York where he was mentored by Dr. Jimmie Holland under the Union for International Cancer Control Fellowship in 2014. Besides, his work at Faraja. Philip is also a fellow at the Association of Union for International Cancer Control Fellows and was awarded Naomi Stearns Fellow in 2018 for his role in developing psychosocial oncology in Kenya. Philip was elected in 2019 as a Director representing Africa in the International Psycho-Oncology Organization
Philip Odiyo is currently the Secretary for Prostate Cancer Support Association in Kenya and a board member at Kenyan Network of Cancer Organizations; he is also a committee member representing developing countries at the International Society for Sexual Medicine (ISSM) and the Vice President of Association for Psycho-Oncology Society in Africa.
Philip has presented in several IPOS meetings in Rotterdam (2013), Portugal (2014) and Berlin (2017). He has been actively involved in IPOS Academies in Durban (2013), Marrakech (2015) and Kigali (2016) and the 2019 Annual Fall Scientific meeting in Nashville, TN, USA. He was instrumental in the organization for the first ISSM/SMSNA Sexual Health conference in 2019 in Nairobi Kenya and the ongoing planning for the East African Virtual ISSM/SMSNA Virtual Sexual Health Symposium in December 2021.
He is a reviewer in the following Journals: The Breast Journal, Supportive Care in Cancer, e-Cancer Journal and Psycho-Oncology: Journal of Psychological, Social and behavioural dimensions of cancer.
Program Format
The program consisted of monthly 90-minute sessions, with didactic and case consultation components. Participants had an opportunity to submit cases for discussion, based on the topic of any particular session.
Program objectives:
- Educate participants about the impact of cancer treatments on sexual health of patients, partners and couples
- Educate participants about sexual rehabilitation strategies after cancer treatment
- Provide consultation on actual clinical cases
- Encourage a robust discussion of cultural issues that influence patients’ and partners’ experience of sexual problems after cancer treatment and recovery of sexual intimacy
This program was designed for oncologists, surgeons, radiation oncologists, psychologists, social workers, nurses, physical therapists, and trainees located in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Certification of attendance/completion has been awarded to anyone who completes 60% (3) of the 5 sessions. These sessions must be attended live.
CPD points will be awarded for participants from Kenya.
Past sessions
- June 12, 2024: How to Take a Sexual History in Cancer Patients
- July 10, 2024: Ethical, Legal and Cultural Aspects to Be Considered When Working With Cancer Patients in Africa
- August 7, 2024: Skills to Assess and Treat Sexual Dysfunction After Cancer Treatment in Males
- September 4, 2024: Skills to Assess and Treat Sexual Dysfunction After Cancer Treatment in Females
- October 2, 2024: Psycho-Sexual Rehabilitation After Treatment of Cancer for the Patient and Partner