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Head and neck cancers (HNCs) are prevalent in Sudan, but the reasons for this and the incidence of different types of HNCs are not well understood. A cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted to provide baseline data on the epidemiology of HNCs among patients treated at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in central Sudan. All cancer cases from 2016 to 2020 were retrieved from the NCI records. Of the 9475 new cancer patients who were registered at the NCI during the study period, 1033 (11%) had HNCs, of whom 767 (74.2%) were adults. The mean age of the adult patients was 54.5 years (standard deviation 15.8) and 449 (58.5%) patients were male. The annual incidence in adults was 4/105 population. The most common HNC sites were the nasopharynx (25.3%), hypopharynx (22.8%), and oral cavity (22.2%). Carcinoma was the most common diagnosis (87.6%), followed by lymphoma (5.6%). Most patients’ tumors were at a locally advanced (22%) or metastatic stage (47%) of HNCs at the time of presentation. Further studies to identify risk factors for HNCs, particularly for the most prevalent types in central Sudan, are needed. In addition, Sudan requires capacity building for cancer, including a national cancer registry.

BACKGROUND In the current wave of educational reforms, understanding teaching styles of medical faculty will help modify instructional strategies for effective teaching. Few studies have probed unique teaching styles of medical academics. OBJECTIVE This study compared the preferred teaching styles of faculty from seven medical schools. METHODS The validated Grasha-Riechmann teaching style inventory was administered online to the entire medical faculty actively involved in teaching in 7 medical schools in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Sudan, and the Netherlands. RESULTS We received 248 responses from 460 invitees (response rate; 54%). Overall, there was an agreement with the majority of suggested teaching styles. However, we also observed significant variations across seniority, gender, and institutions. The most common teaching style, stimulating students’ inquisitive behaviors to satisfy their curiosity, was preferred by 195 (68%) teachers. As many as 117 (47%) academics disagreed with the teaching philosophy of delivering course contents by strictly following learning outcomes. Interestingly, the teaching styles of young teachers with less than 10 years of experience (112/248) more closely matched with students’ learning styles. Female teachers (114/248) were more willingly to solicit their students for understanding course contents, while male teachers tended to allow more autonomy by allowing students to set their learning agenda. CONCLUSIONS This study showed a student-centered approach and motivating students for the discovery of their scientific curiosity as the most preferred teaching styles. These findings can help educators in modifying medical curricula and in developing faculty enhancement programs to enrich the learning climate.

Community-based education (CBE) is the means of achieving educational relevance to community needs. The Integrated Field Training, Research and Rural Development Program (IFTRRD) is a course designed to achieve CBE in Faculty of Medicine, University of Gezira since its establishment in 1978. We aimed to study CBE from Gezira medical students’ perspective regarding the IFTRRD course. In this cross-sectional study, 244 medical students at University of Gezira were enrolled during 2016-2017. Most of the participants agreed that their team work and leadership skills had improved (82% and 78.3% respectively). Moreover, 96% of the students agreed that rural stay helped them be engaged with the community. About 91% identified health and health-related problems in the village and 50% of them performed interventions. About 45.9% achieved 75% of the social accountability philosophy. The students gained communication, teamwork and leadership skills. Moreover, they achieved the philosophy of the university in social accountability. They also identified community problems and performed appropriate interventions. Keywords: COMMUNITY; COMMUNITY ORIENTATION; STUDENTS’ PERSPECTIVE; SUDAN