I am a Senior Medical Officer in the Department of Medical Oncology at Windhoek Central Hospital, the primary public referral center for oncology care in Namibia. With over five years of experience, I am part of a national referral team responsible for managing a wide spectrum of oncological conditions across the country. We manage patients using chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or combined modalities. We may also, on occasion, refer patients for advanced therapies outside the country. We also integrate available targeted therapies when clinically indicated and accessible. Equally important in our setting is the provision of palliative care.
My role includes acting as a key liaison between our department and affiliate specialties such as General Surgery, Gynaecology, ENT/Maxillofacial Surgery, and relevant non-governmental organizations. We are committed to fostering strong, dynamic multidisciplinary teams, with evidence-based medicine as the foundation of our care approach. I am also involved in education and capacity-building, mentoring junior doctors and interns in oncology principles, communication skills, and ethical patient care.
A core priority moving forward is strengthening our research capacity, particularly focused on generating local and regional oncology data. Currently, data from Namibia and the Southern African region remains insufficient to guide population-specific care. With a vested interest in cancer genomics, my long-term goal is to deepen our understanding of oncological disease patterns within our population and contribute to improving diagnostic precision, prognostication, and therapy selection.