Established in 2017, the IPVS Founders Travel Award is a meritorious award for early career researchers who are members of IPVS and have submitted an abstract to present at the next IPVS Conference. The awardees received among the highest review scores for their abstract and will receive travel support to be able to present their research work at the conference.
Sadly, our community lost multiple talented scientists in 2025. The IPVS Founders Travel Awards 2026 will be given in memory of Rengaswamy Sankaranarayanan and Ronald Jones.
Rengaswamy Sankaranarayanan (1952 – August 3, 2025) was a radiation oncologist who dedicated more than four decades of his career to advancing cancer prevention and control in low- and middle-income countries. He began his career in India before joining the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon in 1993, where he served as Head of the Section of Early Detection and Prevention and later as Special Advisor on Cancer Control, until 2017.
He led pioneering research validating low-cost, scalable approaches to cervical cancer screening, including visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) and HPV testing, work that reshaped screening policy and practice worldwide. Known affectionately as “Sankar,” he helped launch demonstration screening programs across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and trained healthcare professionals from more than 40 countries. He authored more than 260 scientific publications and mentored generations of researchers and public health professionals across the globe. His contributions were recognized with several international honors, including the Paul P. Carbone Award for International Oncology, the Princess Lalla Salma International Prize, and the Ernst Wertheim Prize.
Ronald William Jones (1939 – March 31, 2025) was a New Zealander gynecological oncologist and internationally recognized expert in colposcopy and vulvar disease, whose career profoundly shaped women’s health policy and ethics. After training in the UK, he returned to Auckland’s National Women’s Hospital in 1973, later becoming Professor of Gynecological Oncology and establishing New Zealand’s first multidisciplinary vulvar clinic. He was a strong advocate for gender-neutral HPV vaccination throughout his career and retirement.
In 1984, his co-authored publication helped trigger the landmark 1987 Cartwright Inquiry into cervical cancer research ethics in New Zealand, leading to the creation of the National Cervical Screening Programme and the country’s Health and Disability Commission. He later documented this history in his 2017 book, Doctors in Denial. Over his career he authored more than 80 peer-reviewed papers, served as President of the ISSVD (2003–2006) and of ANZVS, and remained active as a mentor, ethics lecturer, and advocate for women’s health well after his formal retirement in 2010.
