Dr Shaymaa AlWaheidi is a Project Officer at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), Lyon, France, and a Visiting Research Associate at King’s College London. Her work sits at the intersection of cancer policy, health systems, and global oncology, with a particular focus on conflict-affected and resource-constrained settings.

She completed her PhD in Cancer Research at King’s College London, where her research examined breast cancer incidence, survival, and women’s experiences of diagnosis and management in Gaza, occupied Palestinian territory (oPt). As part of her doctoral work, she collected and validated reliable incidence, treatment, and survival data for women diagnosed with breast cancer in Gaza in 2017–2018; these data are now included within the CONCORD programme for global cancer survival surveillance. She continues to support research and collaborative efforts aimed at strengthening cancer care and cancer control in Gaza during and following the recent conflict. Her broader research interests include access to effective cancer care in fragile settings; patient and healthcare providers’ experiences and perceptions of care; health-system determinants of cancer outcomes; and the political economy of cancer care in contexts affected by conflict, constrained resources, and population displacement.

Alongside her academic work, Dr AlWaheidi contributed to the development of the first Palestinian National Cancer Control Plan in collaboration with the World Health Organization. She is also a research affiliate with Research for Health in Conflict (R4HC) in the MENA region.

Publications:

15. Creaney, G., de Aquino Goulart, M., McMahon, A., ……….; Alwaheidi, S., Brennan, P., Virani, S., Ross, A., Conway, D.I. (2026). Health System Factors in Head and Neck Cancer Diagnosis: A HEADSpAcE Consortium Qualitative Study in Glasgow and Montevideo . Head Neck. DOI:10.1002/hed.70262.

14. AlWaheidi, S., Ismail, A., Sullivan, R., Davies, E. (2025) Conducting cancer research in a conflict setting: A view from the oPt. eCancer. DOI: 10.3332/ecancer.2026.2079.

13. Ebrahimi, E., Sangphukieo, A., ……….; HEADSpAcE Consortium ……, Dudding, T. (2025) Cross-ancestral GWAS identifies 29 variants across head and neck cancer subsites. Nat Commun;16(1):8787. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-63842-z.

12. Allemani, C., Minicozzi, P., Morawski, B., ……………. VENUSCANCER Working Group (2025) Global variation in patterns of care and time to initial treatment for breast, cervical, and ovarian cancer from 2015 to 2018 (VENUSCANCER): a secondary analysis of individual records for 275 792 women from 103 population-based cancer registries in 39 countries and territories. Lancet. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(25)01383-2.

11. AlWaheidi, S., Sullivan, R., Davies, E. (2025) Breast cancer in women in Gaza: qualitative study of women's expectations and experiences of diagnosis and management. Ecancermedicalscience. DOI: 10.3332/ecancer.2025.1889.

10. Creaney, G., de Aquino Goulart, M., McMahon, A., ……….; Alwaheidi, S., Brennan, P., Virani, S., Ross, A., Conway, D.I. (2025). Advanced Stage Head and Neck Cancer Diagnosis: HEADSpAcE Consortium Health Systems Benchmarking Survey. Head Neck. DOI: 10.1002/hed.28094.

9. AlWaheidi, S., Sullivan, R., Davies, E. (2024) Breast Cancer in Women in Gaza: A Review of Clinical Characteristics and Short-Term Survival. JCO Glob Oncol. DOI: 10.1200/GO.23.00170. PMID: 38991184.

8. Fox L, Santaolalla A, Handford J, Sullivan R, Torode J, Vanderpuye V, Pramesh CS, Mula-Hussain L, AlWaheidi S, Makaroff LE, Kaur R, Mackay C, Mukherji D, Van Hemelrijck M. (2023) Redefining Cancer Research Priorities in Low- and Middle-Income Countries in the Post-COVID-19 Global Context: A Modified Delphi Consensus Process. JCO Glob Oncol. DOI: 10.1200/GO.23.00111. PMID: 37561978

7. AlWaheidi, S. (2023) Promoting cancer prevention and early diagnosis in the occupied Palestinian territory. J Cancer Policy. DOI: 10.1016/j.jcpo.2022.100373.

6. Abo Al-Shiekh, S.S., Alajerami, Y.S., Abushab, K,M., AlWaheidi, S., and Davies, E (2022) Factors affecting delay in the presentation of breast cancer symptoms among women in Gaza, occupied Palestinian territory: a cross-sectional survey. BMJ Open;12:e061847. DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-061847.

5. AlWaheidi, S., McPherson, K., Chalmers, I., Sullivan, R., and Davies, E. (2020) Population mammographic screening in Gaza: a critical analysis of its promotion, claimed benefits and safety. JCO Global Oncology. 6, 1772-1790. DOI: 10.1200/JGO.19.00383.

4. Alessy, S. and Alwaheidi, S. (2020) Moving cancer prevention and care forward in Saudi Arabia. Journal of Cancer Policy. 26, 100250. DOI: 10.1016/j.jcpo.2020.100250.

3. Alser, O., Alwaheidi, S., Elessi, K. and Meghari, H. (2020) COVID-19 in Gaza: a pandemic spreading in a place already under protracted lockdown. East Mediterr Health J. 26(7), 762–763. DOI: 10.26719/emhj.20.089.

2. Alwaheidi, S., Sullivan, R. and Davies, E. (2020) Additional challenges faced by cancer patients in Gaza due to COVID-19. eCancer. DOI: 10.3332/ecancer.2020.ed100.

1. AlWaheidi, S. (2019) Breast cancer in Gaza – a public health priority in search of reliable data. eCancer. 13(964), 1–8. DOI: 10.3332/ecancer.2019.964.