The training rooms were full of activity, and excitement was in the air. Everyone, from doctors and nurses to radiographers and engineers, felt the energy. They had their hands on the tools of change.
The Africa Institute of Liver and Digestive Diseases (AILDD) launched its first advanced endoscopy training in the clinic at its Center for Excellence in Ghana in May 2025. This opportunity meant more than transferring a new skill—it marked the launch of a training model designed to be sustainable and locally led.
For Dr. Kenneth Tachi, M.B., Ch.B, M.Sc., F.W.C.A.P, F.G.C.P., a program participant, the experience opened possibilities for his patients.
“It has always been my goal to develop my advanced endoscopy skills,” he said. “But more importantly, I saw the urgent need for local expertise, and I wanted to be part of the solution.”
Dr. Tachi works as a gastroenterologist at Ghana’s Korle Bu Teaching Hospital. Although he had trained in this procedure in Japan, he had not had the chance to apply those skills since returning to Ghana. This hands-on workshop reintroduced important techniques and gave him and his entire team the opportunity to learn side-by-side with the guidance of international faculty.
He sees this training as the first step toward expanding access to minimally invasive GI procedures to improve patient outcomes and reduce the need for surgery or travel to seek care.
Skilled Hands, New Tools
The workshop used lectures, simulations, and expert guidance to train teams in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), a procedure for detecting and treating bile duct issues, gallstones, and cancers. It involves passing a small camera on a tube through the patient’s throat and into the small intestine. This procedure is the standard of care in pany parts of the world but is difficult to access in Ghana and much of Africa.
Worldwide, gallstones affect 10–15% of adults. Pancreatic and bile duct cancers, while less common, are often diagnosed late, particularly in areas with limited diagnostic tools and training. AILDD’s ERCP training program is helping close that gap, demonstrating what’s possible when we furnish local leaders with the tools to transform patient care in their own communities.
Dr. Akwi Asombang, M.D., M.P.H., an interventional gastroenterologist from Massachusetts General Hospital, the workshop’s lead trainer and a member of the AILDD board, described the experience as joyful and full of a sense of shared purpose.
“Everyone, from the doctors to the nurses to the technicians, was fully engaged,” she said. “We worked hard, but we also had fun. There was a sense that what we were doing was going to change lives.”
Participants worked in teams, mirroring real-world practice, and took turns in training on room setup, accessory handling, and radiation safety. The training wasn’t designed to end with a single workshop. Rather, it’s part of a yearlong program to prepare a Ghana-based team to deliver care independently and to train others.
“You can’t do hit-and-run training,” Dr. Asombang explained. “We’re not just transferring skills. We’re building a training center where others from across Africa can come to learn.”
Workshops will be offered monthly in Ghana’s regional Center of Excellence throughout 2025 and 2026. This model is designed not just for clinical advancement but also for local sustainability and to build capacity across Africa. AILDD collaborators have already begun similar efforts in Nigeria and Zambia.
Global Research Under Local Leadership
AILDD has a vision that goes beyond improving patient care. We’re also creating new pathways for global liver and digestive disease research. As diagnostic capabilities expand, so too will the opportunity to generate data that reflects the true burden and biology of gastrointestinal cancers in people of African ancestry. Clinical guidelines often rely on data from Western countries, and AILDD’s model helps close that gap.
“What we learn about cancer here can inform how we treat cancer everywhere,” said Dr. Lewis Roberts, M.B., Ch.B., Ph.D., F.A.C.P., AILDD president and a gastroenterologist from Mayo Clinic.
AILDD will host a full-day workshop on ERCP and endoscopic ultrasound in Johannesburg in August 2025 at the Africa HepatoPancreatoBiliary Cancer Consortium Annual Conference. These professional gatherings are essential for clinical learning, building regional leadership, and identifying future training sites across Africa.
Join Us
At AILDD, we believe the future of global cancer care is being shaped through partnerships rooted in shared purpose.
In the months ahead, we’re building on the success of this first ERCP training to reach more regions, equip more clinicians, and gather the data that leads to advances in patient care.
Want To Be Part of This Movement?
Join us in Houston on September 28, 2025, for the Making a Difference Together dinner, an evening of stories, connection, and support for expanding GI cancer training and research across Africa.
Together, we can grow a model for patient care and research that’s already making a difference and extend its impact even further.
