General Information - Application of GSF
The Gordon Signy Fellowship of the World Pathology Foundations
The World Pathology Foundation was chartered in 1972, in Berne, Switzerland. At that time the World Association of Societies in Pathology or WASP, as it was then known, decided that a body, completely separate and independent of the WASP was required. The purpose of this new body was stated thus; " The objectives of the Foundation are scientific, educational and charitable; to promote public safety and public health by fostering the development of good standards in anatomic and clinical pathology, especially in the developing countries."
Gordon Signy Foreign Fellowships were established a little later to assist trainee pathologists to gain experience in techniques relevant to the requirements of pathology in their country. These Fellowships consisted of financial support to enable successful applicants to travel, for short periods of time, to established, laboratory centres of excellence around the world. In 1975-2004, thirty-two young trainee pathologists from 20 countries were granted a Fellowship.
The World Pathology Foundation obtains its funds solely from gifts and donations from National Societies and does not have specific fund raising appeals.
The Gordon Signy Fellowship in Pathology was established in honor of Gordon Signy, a notable supporter of the World Association, who died in London in 1972. He qualified in Medicine at Guy's Hospital, London, in 1926 and became a clinical pathologist in the widest sense, his professional career spanning nearly a half century of astounding advances in all branches of pathology, anatomic and clinical. His 28-year record of establishing and developing the prestigious (British) Journal of Clinical Pathology can never be equaled. He helped to establish and was a Foundation Vice-President of the Royal College of Pathologists. He was involved in research into hospital sepsis, rheumatic fever, and many other scientific fields; he was non-playing captain of a British Olympic Fencing Team and was a witty raconteur. He had special regard for pathology trainees from less developed countries and worked strenuously to find them training places in the United Kingdom.
Gordon Signy Fellowship have been established to enable young pathologists from countries with limited resources to visit centers of renowned excellence, in other countries, to learn laboratory techniques that will be of benefit to the services provided from their laboratories when they return home.
In 1975 the first Gordon Signy Fellowship was awarded to Dr. R. Ponnu Goundar, Suva, Fiji, to enable him to study cryostat (frozen section) techniques in New Zealand.
In 1979 the second Gordon Signy Fellowship was awarded to Dr. S. E. Ikerionwu, University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu, Nigeria, to enable him to study cytogenetics at the University of Minnesota, U.S.A..
In 1981 there were three Gordon Signy Fellowships awarded, one to Dr. Raj Mehrota, Lucknow, India to enable him to study the histopathology of the liver in London; one to Dr. Victor K. E. Lim, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to study microbiological methods to test betalactamases and to undertake a course in computer methods in medical microbiology in England; and the other to Dr. Samir Sami Amr, Amman, Jordan, to study the histopathology of liver and kidney in Washington, U.S.A..
In 1982, the sixth Gordon Signy Fellowship was awarded to Dr. Tivadar Laszio Miko, Debrecen, Hungary, who studied stomatology in London.
In 1983, the seventh Gordon Signy Fellowship was awarded to Dr. Ho-Cheong-Ho, Hong Kong, who studied neuropathology at the Department of Neuropathology in Southampton, England.
In 1984, there were two Gordon Signy Fellowships; one was awarded to Dr. Milan Simic, Novi Sad, Yugoslavia, to study causes of sudden unexpected death of intravenous drug addicts, at the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden; the other was awarded to Dr. Zhu Simin, Guangzhon (Canton), Peoples Republic of China, to study cell culture and monoclonal techniques and immunopathological methods on tumors.
In 1987 two Gordon Signy Fellowships were awarded, one to Dr. Zhang Xin-Min from Guangzhou, Peoples Republic of China, to work with techniques of histomorphological studies in the examination of bone and soft tissues including joints in Toronto, Canada, and the other to Dr. Chi-Sing Ng from Hong Kong who completed his studies and work on Southern Blot Analysis in Toronto, Canada.
In 1989, three Fellowships were awarded. One went to Dr. Mmari Mirisho-Pente Wilson of Dar es Salam, Tanzania who studied haemoglobinopathies at University College Hospital, London, England. Another went to Dr. Kin-hang Fu of Hong Kong who studied DNA hybridization techniques in the Department of Pathology, British Columbia Children's Hospital, Vancouver, B.C. Canada. And the third was awarded to Dr. Kamthorn Thramprasert of Chiang Mai, Thailand, who went to the Cabrini Hospital and the Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Australia, to study kidney and skin biopsies and cytology specimens, including immunohistochemical and electron microscopic techniques.
The two Gordon Signy Fellows for 1990 were both from India Dr. V. M. Sashidar and Dr. S. Bijur. Dr. Sa Gilda Da Cunha Santos of Brazil who was the 1991 recipient worked in Clinical Cytology at Karolinska Hospital during the latter part of 1992, with special reference to fine needle aspiration biopsies, under the supervision of Dr. Torsten Lowhagen.
In 1993/94, there were two Fellowships awarded, to Dr. A. Banjo of Nigeria and Dr. B. Jafari of lran. Dr. Banjo gained experience in clinical cytopathology and genetics at St Mary's Hospital, London, whilst Dr. B. Jafari worked at Toronto General Hospital and at Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore learning about fine needle aspiration and cytology.
In 1995/96, Dr. R. Makunike of Zimbabwe worked on fine needle aspiration biopsies at the Institute of Cancer Research in Oslo, and Dr. Angela Flavia Loguelo, of Brazil studied the immunochemistry of tumors of the head and neck at the Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.
In 1996/97 three Fellowships were awarded, to Dr. Turgan of Turkey, Dr. Popovska of Bulgaria, and Dr. Yazdanipour of lran (who at the last minute was unable to pursue his intended study and was forced to decline the Award). Two further Fellowships were granted for 1997/98, to Dr. Guevera-Pineda of Peru and Dr. Pinto of Brazil.
In 1999 Fellowship went to Dr. Obiageli Eunice Nnodu of Nigeria. She studied fine needle aspiration at the Karolinska Hospital, Sweden.
Fellowship of the year of 2000 awarded to Dr. M. Olufemi Dada of Nigeria, who studied at hematology department of King's College Hospital, London U.K..
In fiscal year of 2001, two Gordon Signy Fellowships were awarded, one to Dr. Isin Soyuer from Turkey to improve her knowledge in specific subjects of Cytopathology in the University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, U.S.A., and the other to Dr. Jorge Sergio Reis Filho, Brazilian working in Portugal, to study diagnostic breast pathology and molecular pathology in The Breakthrough Toby Robins Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Centre, London U.K..
In fiscal year of 2002 three Fellowships were decided to award for their studies of calendar year of 2004. Dr. Giedrius Salkus of Lithuania for the study of Molecular Pathology and Soft Tissue Tumor Pathology at the Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, U.S.A.. Dr. Gabriel Olabiyi OGUN of Nigeria for the study of Electron Microscopy of soft tissue and bone tumors at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology Center for Advanced Pathology, Washington D.C. U.S.A.. Dr. Perera Rajeeka Lakmalee Morawakage of Sri Lanka for the study of molecular techniques in tissue typing at North London Blood Center, U.K.
In fiscal year of 2003, which means the training held in calendar year of 2005, three Gordon Signy Fellowships were awarded, one to Dr. Smita Chowkekar from India to improve her knowledge in dermatopathology and immunopathology at Ackerman Academy of Dermatopathology New York, U.S.A.; Dr. Narantsatsralt Narantsogt from Mongolia to study molecular biological methods for detection of HCV/HBV at the Department of Laboratory Medicine, Tokai University, Japan; and Dr. Ceyda Kabaroglu from Turkey to study gas/liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry in the diagnosis of inborn errors of metabolism at the VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
In fiscal year of 2004, which means the fellowship for the training in the calendar year of 2006, two Gordon Signy Fellowship were awarded, one to Dr. Rashmi Tondon from India to study the techniques of Platelet Immunofluorescence Test and others at Cambridge and Bristol UK; Dr. Isabela Werneck Cunha from Brazil to study the diagnostic training in soft tissue sarcomas and bone pathology at Department of Pathology, Mayo clinic, Rochester, USA.
In fiscal year of 2005, which means the fellowship for the training in calendar year of 2007, four fellowships were awarded: Dr. Rajalakshmi Tirumalae from India to study basic and advanced immuno-histochemical and molecular techniques in dermatopathology at Department of Pathology, Dermatologikum, Hamburg, Germany; Dr. Antonio Hugo Jose Froes Marques Campos to study molecularpathology techniques in hematological malignancies at Centro Nacional de Investigaciounes Oncologicas Molecular Pathology Programme, Spain; Dr. Leticia Gresta to study soft tissue pathology and surgical pathology at Mayo Clinic, U.S.A; Dr. Aline Helen Da Silva to study the neuropathology and hematopathology at University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
In 1975-2006, forty one (41) young trainee pathologists from 21 countries were granted a Fellowship.
General Information
The Gordon Signy Fellowship in Pathology was established in 1972 in honor of Dr. Gordon Signy.
The purpose of the Fellowship is to assist young pathologists from countries with limited resources to travel to specialist centers, abroad in order to learn laboratory techniques that will promote the practices of Pathology in their own country when they return home.
The term "young pathologist" refers to a medically qualified practitioner who is training in a branch of pathology or who has not completed such training more than 10 years before applying for a fellowship.
The period of study proposed by an applicant may be of several weeks or months but should be regarded as sufficient to give the applicant the necessary skills in the technique that are to be studied.
The fellowship is not intended to support general training, diplomas or post-graduated degrees.
The award will be made by the Trustees of the World Pathology Foundation on the advice of an international Board of Regents.
In assessing the applications, the Board of Regents will consider the scientific and clinical merit of the application, the qualifications of the applicant, the value of the proposed study to the applicant, and the value of the proposed study to the applicant's community.
Other sources of income may be held at the same time as the Fellowship, but in making their recommendation the Board of Regents will consider the financial need of the applicant.
The Board of the Trustee will not award a Fellowship to support a course of study already completed.
The applicant must undertake to return to his or her own country on completion of the proposed course of study.
Before payment is made to the successful applicant, the applicant must submit evidence that the proposed course of study is acceptable to those under whom the applicant is to work, and to the institution in which he or she will work.
At the conclusion of the program, the fellow must submit a short report to the World Pathology Foundation.
Awards will not be made retrospectively. Trainees already undertaking training, or about to do so, will not be deemed eligible for a Gordon Signy Fellowship.
