Editorial Board

Dr. Groesbeck Parham earned his B.S. in Sociology/Anthropology from Oberlin College and M.D. from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he completed a residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology. He pursued studies in female urology at the University of London, England (St. George’s Hospital) and the University of Khartoum, Sudan, where he studied surgical techniques to repair pelvic defects in women who had undergone genital mutilation (circumcision).

After completing a fellowship in gynecologic oncology at the University of California, Irvine, Dr. Parham served as director of the divisions of Gynecologic Oncology at the Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles and at the University of Arkansas School of Medicine in Little Rock. He established the first gynecology clinic for HIV-infected women in southern California, located at T.H.E. Clinic in Los, Angeles. Presently he is professor of gynecologic oncology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In Lusaka, Zambia where he has lived since 2005, he serves as Honorary Consultant and Lecturer at the University Teaching Hospital of Zambia where he leads a surgical training program in gynecologic oncology. His expertise in scaling up cervical and breast cancer services in resource-poor global environments has been sought by the United Nations Population Fund and World Health Organization, where he presently serves as the Senior Clinical Expert for the Elimination of Cervical Cancer in the Office of the Director General.

As a leader in combating women’s cancers in resource-constrained global environments, he developed an innovative program (Cervical Cancer Prevention Program in Zambia) for cervical cancer screening in which trained nurses use simple household vinegar and a digital camera. More than 1 million Zambian women have been screened by the program, it has been adopted by the Zambian Ministry of Health, and has been leveraged to facilitate solutions for downstaging breast cancer in Africa. His many honors include awards from the Society of Gynecologic Oncology, the Congressional Black Caucus, the United Nations and honorary doctorate degrees from Oberlin College and Southern Methodist University.

Expertise
• Gynecologic oncology
• Screening and treatment of cervical cancer precursors
• Scaling up cervical and breast cancer services in resource-poor global environments
• Surgical oncology training

Research focus
• Cervical and breast cancer early detection and treatment in Africa
• Building women’s cancer surgical treatment platforms in Africa
• HIV and cervical cancer
• Use of African Chiefs and Traditional Healers to promote cervical cancer prevention in Africa