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Dear Members and Friends,

As I reflect on the end of another year and mark a personal milestone—celebrating my 60th birthday on December 4th—I find myself looking back with gratitude and forward with anticipation. Milestone birthdays have a way of causing one to pause and reflect on the journey so far, to take stock of what we are thankful for, and to consider the path that lies ahead before the next milestone.

I am incredibly grateful to have spent the better part of my 50’s as CEO of the IGCS. Throughout the last 8+ years I’ve spent with IGCS, I have experienced some of the most personally and professionally rewarding moments of my life, and some of the most challenging. Here are some of the lessons I’ve learned along the way, and the ideals I remain committed to upholding as we navigate the future.

Staying Ahead by Looking Outward
It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day demands of running an organization. As we push forward, I challenge myself, my team, and our volunteer leaders to look beyond our walls. We must seek out fresh ideas, explore innovations, and learn from the wider world around us. By scanning the external environment and examining challenges from new and diverse perspectives, we can fuel IGCS with new opportunities that help us stay ahead of the curve and accelerate progress.

Listening to Lead, Learning to Serve
While I interact mostly with IGCS’ volunteer leaders, I realize it is equally important for me and our leaders to engage with the broader membership—those who join us for different reasons and have varied expectations of our organization. It is crucial that we understand the diverse voices within IGCS to better serve the entire community. Listening deeply to everyone ensures that we remain a truly inclusive and responsive organization. I love traveling to regional meetings and joining Project ECHO virtual tumor board sessions because it keeps me connected to our members and gives me the opportunity to hear their perspectives.

Information is Power: Mastering the Data
I am particularly proud of the investment we made in 2023 in our data infrastructure. In the non-profit world, it can be challenging to maintain the accuracy of member and partner data and harness its power. However, with the board’s trust and the support of my team, we have implemented processes to maintain and continuously improve the quality of our data and are now better equipped to leverage this information for smarter decision-making. This ongoing investment gives us the insights we need to understand our trends, our members, and their engagement with IGCS, which informs the delivery of high-priority programs in the future.

Everyone Knows Membership: The Foundation of Our Success
IGCS exists to serve its members and is sustained by their support and engagement. The success of member recruitment and retention relies on every part of the organization working together to deliver valuable content and impactful programs that not only support our members’ professional needs but also provides them with meaningful opportunities to contribute to our shared mission.

Each board meeting is opened by reviewing our membership data to ensure we never lose sight of who we are —and what we are striving to achieve. We are invested in nurturing the multidisciplinary team and improving care globally. By consistently measuring the distribution of membership and their engagement levels, we can make better decisions about how to serve you and how to expand our reach in areas of opportunity.

Ongoing Assessment and Strategic Decision-Making
As I move into a new personal decade, I bring with me the wisdom, confidence and courage that is often needed to guide strategic decisions. Time and resources must be used wisely, and I am committed to examining and evaluating our programs to ensure they remain relevant and impactful. If programs no longer serve their purpose or are distracting us from our core mission, we may need to sunset them. We must stay laser-focused on driving strategic initiatives, fostering innovation, and sustaining our growth to ensure IGCS remains a vital and transformative force in gynecologic oncology.

A World of Hope: In Development
With the recent launch of the IGCS World of Hope development fund, we have an incredible opportunity to demonstrate the power and potential of our programs to tap into a broader network of support. Our work is crucial to improving care, education, and awareness of gynecologic cancers globally. However, the potential to do more is enormous. This development program will give us the financial flexibility to sustain and expand our mentorship and training programs and educational initiatives and cultivate stronger relationships with donors and partners committed to advancing gynecologic cancer care and accelerating progress towards the elimination of cervical cancer.

As we close out this year, I am filled with immense gratitude for the privilege of working towards such a noble mission. Thanks to all of you, I can begin to imagine a world where every woman has access to quality gynecologic cancer care. Together, we’ve built a strong foundation, and I am excited about what the future holds. Thank you for your continued dedication and support. Here’s to another year of progress, innovation, and success.

Warmest regards,

Mary Eiken, MS
IGCS CEO 

I’ll never forget celebrating my 60th birthday in India with my friends from the IGCS. Thanks to Dr. Asima Mukhopadhyay, who so kindly gifted me a beautiful green sari —a traditional garment worn by women in South Asia. Moments such as these while traveling abroad contribute to my personal growth and give me a deeper understanding and appreciation of the world and the people in it. I am forever grateful.