Queen honours recipients of King Hussein Award for Cancer Research

AMMAN — Her Majesty Queen Rania honoured recipients of the 2021 King Hussein Award for Cancer Research on Sunday during an award ceremony held by the King Hussein Cancer Foundation. 

The ceremony was held under the patronage of Their Majesties King Abdullah and Queen Rania, and in the presence of Their Royal Highnesses Prince Talal Bin Muhammad and Princess Ghida Talal, according to a statement from Her Majesty’s office.

Queen Rania distributed honorary plaques to the award’s nine winners, who hailed from Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and the United States.

Speaking in her capacity as Chairperson of the King Hussein Cancer Foundation (KHCF) and King Hussein Cancer Center (KHCC), Princess Ghida said: “Today, from the heart of Jordan’s capital Amman, let us work together to change the narrative of cancer in our region, and create the only future we are willing to accept: A cancer-free future; a future that can only be assured through research.”

Launched last year in memory of the late King Hussein, the King Hussein Award for Cancer Research aims to strengthen and elevate cancer research efforts in the Arab world. 

A total of 111 researchers from 15 Arab countries submitted applications in the award’s four categories. Submissions were evaluated by a special judging committee based on specific criteria for each research category.

The winners of the award included: Dr Margret Shirinian, American University of Beirut (AUB) and Dr Wafaa Ramadan (University of Sharjah) in the Promising Researcher Grant category; Dr Yacoub Yousef (KHCC) in the Research Project category’s Promising Investigator track; Dr Hikmat Abdel-Razeq (KHCC) and Dr Raya Saab (AUB) in the Research Project category’s Established Investigator track; Dr Nagi El Saghir (AUB) and Dr Mahmoud Aljurf (King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre) in the category of Lifetime Achievement for a Regional Doctor; Dr Rami Komrokji (H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Centre and Research Institute) in the category of Lifetime Achievement for an International Doctor; and the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, represented by its CEO, Dr Majid Alfayyadh, in the category of Institutional Excellence.

The ceremony was attended by the award’s board of directors, which includes leading doctors, researchers and oncologists from across the region and the world. Journalists and award partners were also present.