Infrastructure development and training for doctors and other medical staff are key to better treatment, diagnosis and management of cancer in the developing world, experts emphasized at a panel discussion titled Boosting Capacity for Cancer Care, organized by the IAEA to mark this year’s World Cancer Day. An integrated approach including the various aspects and modalities of cancer care is required, experts said – and the IAEA can help countries in achieving it.
“The challenge is daunting: in 59 countries, less than a quarter of patients have access to radiotherapy. That means that huge numbers of people die of conditions that would often be treatable if their countries had the necessary equipment and facilities, and enough well-trained doctors and technical professionals,” said IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano, opening the event.
Panellists discussed the impact of specific programmes and projects, as well as how the IAEA can facilitate the transfer of knowledge and expertise. They also discussed some of the latest technological advances in radiation medicine.
“Medicine is an ever-evolving field, with technological advances and changing disease patterns, so it is important to provide countries with opportunities to keep abreast of latest developments,” said Najat Mokhtar, IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications, who moderated the panel discussion.
Mack Roach III, Professor of Radiation Oncology and Urology and Director of the Particle Therapy Research Program and Outreach at the University of California San Francisco, described some of the recent advances in nuclear and radiation medicine.
“One type of new knowledge we have about radiation therapy is what we call ‘flash radiation’, which is 600 times faster than conventional radiation,” he said. “It appears that if you deliver radiation fast enough, you don’t have to worry about the motion of the patient, for example when they breathe. Faster treatment times also mean you can get to more patients per day.”
Kennedy Lishimpi, Director and National Coordinator Cancer Control Services at the Cancer Diseases Hospital in Zambia, spoke about the country’s establishment, with support from the IAEA, of its first cancer treatment centre over ten years ago.
“The hospital has become a comprehensive centre for the delivery of radiation medicine,” he said. “A strong human resource development programme is essential to ensuring progress, so we established local trainings in order to sustain these services.” With more staff available, the number of patients treated has also increased, he said.
