Global Health

Itinerary

In Boston, Federal Minister of Health Hermann Gröhe met with scientists from the life science scene, specifically from transplantation medicine, neurosurgery and stem cell research, to have an exchange on recent research findings and projects. Joined by the outstanding cancer researchers-cum-physicians Professor Michael Baumann, Director of the German Cancer Research Centre in Heidelberg, and Professor Michael Hallek of Cologne University, Federal Minister Gröhe visited the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston that has garnered international renown for its cancer research and care centers. There they met with Professor Ann Lacasce and other members of the Institute to discuss the translation of research findings into patient care approaches, medical training and the co-operation with the German Cancer Research Centre. Thanks to advances in health care, people in Germany now have far longer survival times after a cancer diagnosis than they did ten years ago. Nevertheless, cancer is still the number two cause of death in this country.

Presentation of Germany’s G20 Presidency

High on Germany’s agenda for the G20 Presidency is the fight against antimicrobial resistance (AMR). It also prominently featured at a meeting in New York with the ambassadors of the 20 leading industrialised nations and emerging economies (G20), the G3 countries as well as 50°representatives of African countries. To boost preparedness for cross-border health emergencies, the Health Ministers‘ Meeting in Berlin on 19/20 May 2017 will include a simulation exercise that is expected to yield critical insights into coordination efforts during an active crisis and so further enhance pre-crisis preparation. 

Bilateral talks

Hermann Gröhe was the first European health minister to meet with his US counterpart Dr.°Tom Price, to discuss global health cooperation and the fight against AMR.

Moreover, the Federal Minister of Health had an exchange with World Bank President Jim Yong Kim and other employees of the World Bank in Washington. The World Bank has a key role to play in preparing for and responding to cross-border health threats.

Cancer Moonshot Workshop

Together with Georg Schütte, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and Dr. Douglas Lowy, Director of the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI), Federal Health Minister Hermann Gröhe opened a one-day U.S.- German Workshop in Washington that served to advance cancer research. The workshop was prompted by the U.S. Cancer Moonshot Initiative that aims to speed up research so as to achieve a decade’s worth of findings within a five-year timeframe. The workshop brought together outstanding experts in cancer research from the USA and Germany. This helps to continue and deepen the long-standing and evolved tradition of co-operation that exists between the researchers from, for instance, the German Cancer Research Institute, the German Cancer Consortium - DKTK and the U.S. National Cancer Institute. Thanks to this, the workshop went a long way to stimulating the exchange on cancer research between Germany and the USA and to carry on this fruitful cooperation for the patients’ benefit.

International fight against antimicrobial resistance

Federal Health Minister Gröhe and State Secretary Schütte also visited the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). There they met with NIAID Director Dr. Anthony S. Fauci to discuss the challenges involved in investigating AMR. At the initiative of the Federal Ministry of Health, WHO had drafted a global list of antibiotic-resistant "priority pathogens", bacteria for which new and effective antibiotics should be urgently developed. The NIAID supports and conducts research programmes into AMR, also investigating the superbug responsible for MRSA, known as Staphylococcus aureus, that also features on WHO’s “dirty dozen” list.