The Winn CDA is part of the Robert A. Winn Diversity in Clinical Trials Award Program , a multi-year, $100M+ public–private initiative established by the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation with partners including Gilead Sciences, Amgen, Genentech, and the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR). The program’s mission is to increase diversity in clinical trials, transform the clinical research landscape, and ensure that treatments are tested, safe, and effective for all patients—especially those in communities that have historically been excluded from research.Dr. Chemtai Mungo is a physician-scientist whose work focuses on secondary prevention of cervical cancer in low-resource settings, with a particular emphasis on self-administered vaginal therapies for cervical precancer in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where shortages of trained surgical providers and structural barriers to care are common. She currently leads NIH-funded clinical research aimed at improving human papillomavirus (HPV) treatment outcomes among women living with HIV in Africa and at understanding how the vaginal microbiome shapes responses to novel therapies.
“Having grown up in Kenya and now caring for patients in North Carolina, I see every day how where you live still determines whether you have access to timely, life-saving care,” Mungo said. “The Winn CDA will help me design clinical trials that are rooted in partnership with communities—whether in Africa or rural counties in the U.S.—so that women at highest risk for cervical cancer can benefit from the very science their needs inspire.”
Cervical cancer remains one of the starkest examples of global inequity: an estimated 85–90% of new cases and deaths occur in LMICs, yet cancer clinical trials enroll few patients in these settings and are often led by investigators in high-income countries, limiting relevance to the populations who bear the greatest burden. In the United States, similar patterns of inequity are evident—recent national data show that cervical cancer incidence is roughly 25% higher and mortality 42% higher in rural counties compared with urban areas, reflecting persistent gaps in screening, diagnosis, and treatment access.
Dr. Chemtai Mungo’s research agenda directly targets these gaps by testing feasible, self-administered treatments that can be delivered closer to home, building clinical trial partnerships with public hospitals and safety-net clinics, and mentoring trainees who are committed to advancing health equity in both LMICs and underserved U.S. communities.
