Kehinde Fajobi
The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a new initiative to provide free cancer medicines to thousands of children in low- and middle-income countries, aiming to improve survival rates that lag far behind those in wealthier nations.
The first shipments have already reached Mongolia and Uzbekistan, with deliveries to Ecuador, Jordan, Nepal, and Zambia planned as part of the pilot phase.
WHO expects the programme to reach around 5,000 children across 30 hospitals in these six countries this year.
“Countries in the pilot phase will receive an uninterrupted supply of quality-assured childhood cancer medicines at no cost,” WHO stated on Tuesday.
Survival rates for childhood cancer in low- and middle-income nations often fall below 30%, compared to about 80% in high-income countries.
“For too long, children with cancer have lacked access to life-saving medicines,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
Six more countries have been invited to join the initiative, which aims to expand to 50 nations within five to seven years, ultimately providing treatment for approximately 120,000 children.
According to WHO, around 400,000 children develop cancer globally each year, with most cases occurring in resource-limited settings.
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“It is estimated that 70 percent of the children from these settings die from cancer due to factors such as lack of appropriate treatment, treatment disruptions or low-quality medicines,” WHO stated.
The programme, which was first announced in December 2021, will continue providing free medicines beyond the pilot phase, with efforts underway to ensure long-term sustainability.
The initiative is a joint effort between WHO and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the United States, which has committed $200 million to its launch.