IARC hosts the first CHRONOS face-to-face training session

As part of the Center of Excellence for monitoring the impact of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination in low- and middle-income countries (CHRONOS) of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and the World Health Organization (WHO), the IARC Public Health Decision Science Team (PHDS) and the IARC Learning and Capacity-Building Branch (LCB) are hosting the first CHRONOS face-to-face training session on 16–20 February 2026 at IARC in Lyon, France.

The five-day intensive workshop brings together 15 national experts from Bangladesh, Eswatini, and Indonesia, marking an important milestone in strengthening global capacity for HPV vaccination impact monitoring. Local evidence is essential to inform context-specific cervical cancer control policies and to ensure the comparability of programmes across countries and populations.

Building on the extensive experience of PHDS in conducting HPV impact surveys worldwide, and as a key component of CHRONOS knowledge transfer, this workshop combines theoretical instruction with practical, scenario-based exercises and simulations. This train-the-trainer approach aims to equip participants with the skills and tools required to implement the study within their respective national settings, while ensuring consistently high-quality standards and data.

The workshop focuses on four key objectives: (1) presenting and discussing the adaptation of study documents to each country’s local context, (2) developing tailored training materials based on national needs, (3) strengthening understanding of standard operating procedures (SOPs) required for laboratory and study implementation, and (4) planning and preparing for national urine-based surveys in each setting in 2026–2027.

This successful event represents a major advance in monitoring the impact of HPV vaccination worldwide, strengthening the ability of partner countries to generate high-quality evidence on HPV vaccination impact and opening the door to future collaborations with other countries striving to eliminate cervical cancer.

View group photo

Visit the CHRONOS website

Visit the WHO Cervical Cancer Elimination Initiative website

Read more about the IARC Public Health Decision Science Team (PHDS)

Read more about the IARC Learning and Capacity-Building Branch (LCB)