Imran Morhason-Bello Receives Excellence Award in Research Award

February 2026

Longtime Robert J. Havey, MD Institute for Global Health partner and collaborator Imran O. Morhason-Bello, MBBS, MD, PhD, professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Ibadan in Nigeria, recently received the 2025 Excellence Award in Research by the Society of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of Nigeria (SOGON). The award was presented during the opening ceremony of the 59th SOGON Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference held at the International Conference Centre at the University of Ibadan in Ibadan, Nigeria on November 27, 2025. 

In addition to receiving the award, Morhason-Bello delivered the JB Lawson Memorial Lecture, Emerging Sexual Behaviours & Concordant HPV Infections and Cancers in Women: Facts or Fallacy? 

“I have special research interests in women's health in general, focusing on pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery, gynecological oncology and global health, all of which have influenced policies, best practices and programs worldwide,” Morhason-Bello said. “I have developed my research portfolio after my doctoral degree on understanding the nexus between emerging sexual behaviors and risk of human papillomavirus (HPV) infections and associated cancers in general and key population groups.” 

Morhason-Bello's interest in global health deepened during his residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at the University College Hospital in Ibadan, where he had mentors who exposed him to the basics of research and shared with him the opportunity to participate in several ongoing research projects. 

“My doctoral education at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in London reinforced my interest in research with a specific interest in HPV epidemiology and sexual behaviors,” Morhason-Bello said. “The exposure for a PhD program which was funded through a staff development scholarship program of University of Ibadan remains the energizer that compelled me to go into research and global health.” 

Robert Murphy, MD; Lifang Hou, MD, PhD; Kate Klein, MA, MPH; and Imran Morhason-Bello, MBBS, MD, PhD; attend the launch of the Health on the Roll mobile clinic in Ibadan in 2025.

Morhason-Bello frequently collaborates with Lifang Hou, MD, PhD, director of the Center for Global Oncology at the Havey Institute for Global Health. This collaboration led to the 2024 launch of Health on the Roll, a mobile clinic that provides HPV testing and treatment to women who do not have access to healthcare due to distance and cultural barriers, in addition to providing other basic health screenings and treatments. With the support of the John R. Flanagan Charitable Foundation, the West Africa HPV-Associated Cancers Prevention and Control Program mobile clinic provides equitable access to specialized care for the underserved communities in rural areas by providing HPV-based self-sampling for cervical screening and same-day treatment. Due to the increasing demand for quality healthcare services – especially in urban slums and rural communities – the team integrated other services such as oral health, screening for non-communicable diseases and telemedicine to promote access for specialized care in Nigeria. 

In addition to the mobile clinic, Morhason-Bello and his team have embarked on multiple other research projects centered around HPV and its associated cancers. Thecontinued partnership between Northwestern University and University of Ibadan is highlighted through their ongoing R01 grant on epigenetics of oral and oropharyngeal cancer among people living with HIV/AIDs- PLWHA- (EpOOCH study) in 14 tertiary institution sites in Nigeria. They have also worked on a U01 grant that studies West African HPV-based self-sampling for cervical cancer in Mali and Nigeria and multiple Global Health Research Catalyzer grants.  

Morhason-Bello and his team also established the HPV Consortium at the College of Medicine/University College Hospital at the University of Ibadan. The HPV Consortium is a multidisciplinary research group that cuts across different disciplines and specialties with the overall goal of setting a research agenda on prevention, diagnosis and treatment of HPV-associated morbidities across different anatomical sites including cervical, oral and oropharyngeal, anal, penile, vulva and vaginal cancers in males and females in the general and key affected populations. 

The Center for Global Oncology is a shared center with the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University and Havey Institute for Global Health.   

Lifang Hou, MD, PhD, is a member of the Havey Institute for Global Health, Institute for Public Health and Medicine (IPHAM), Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center and Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (NUCATS). 

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