Prof. Ifeoma Okoye
Director, University of Nigeria Nsukka Center of Excellence for Clinical Trials (UNNCECT)
Ifeoma Joy Okoye, MBBS, FMCR, FWACS, is an Emeritus Professor of Radiation Medicine and an Ashoka Globalizer Fellow. She is the pioneer, and current Director of the University of Nigeria Nsukka Center of Excellence for Clinical Trials (UNNCECT).
With over 44 years in practice, Prof. Okoye specializes in Women’s Health, Interventional Radiology, and cancers of the Breast, Cervix, Prostate, Liver, and Lung. Her expertise was enhanced by short capacity building attachments at the Royal Marsden Hospital; Brompton Hospital, London; Birmingham Maternity Hospital; Mayday Hospital (currently known as Cromwell University Hospital, South London); Edinburgh Royal Infirmary; Western General Hospital Edinburgh & Innsbruck Medical University Hospital, Austria.
Prof. Okoye leads cancer control initiatives & implements community engagement programs for cancer awareness and screening. She has played pivotal roles in clinical trial framework development in Nigeria, biomedical research, and health-systems strengthening, focusing on non-communicable diseases like Diabetes, Sickle Cell Disease, and Chronic Kidney Disease.
Her recent work includes advancing precision medicine, AI in healthcare, imaging genomics, data management, and disease registries. Prof. Okoye initiated/founded the International Cancer Week in Nigeria [now the biggest gathering of stakeholders in Cancer Control in Africa], Breast Without Spot (BWS), and the Association for Good Clinical Practice in Nigeria (AGCPN) whose 2006 policy recommendation gave rise to the establishment of the National Health Research Ethics Committee, NHREC.
A prolific scholar, mentor and international speaker, Prof. Okoye has published over 128 peer-reviewed articles, authored ten books and mentored a quiver full of health care professionals. Early in 2024, she delivered lectures/chaired sessions at the Association of Nigerian Physicians in the Americas Conference; Stanford University, and the University of Pennsylvania.
She serves as Editor of the West African Journal of Radiology and the Journal of Medical Women Association (J-MWAN). Her holistic contributions have significantly advanced cancer control, research ethics, and healthcare system strengthening in Nigeria and beyond.
For 44 years, she remains married to her bestfriend, Engr. Sir. Chris Okoye, in a union blessed with 4 children and three granchildren. Prof Okoye also serves as a pastor/shepherd at the Living by Design Nation (LBD), a community of professionals committed to the tenets of Christianity.