Global drive launched to close care gap for World Cancer Day

By 2030 three in four cancer deaths in people under 50 will occur in low and middle-income nations

An international campaign has been launched to close the gap in cancer care between rich and poorer nations. AP

Campaigners have launched an ambitious bid to close the gap in care offered to cancer patients around the world, as geography looks set to determine the deaths of millions more patients in the coming years.

Three quarters of premature cancer deaths will occur in low and middle-income nations by 2030, the Union for International Cancer Control has warned. The World Health Organisation defines a premature death as one that occurs before the age of 50.

Over the next three years the union will work to break down barriers that patients face after they have been given the dreaded diagnosis.

Prof Anil d’Cruz, president of the union and director of oncology at Apollo Hospitals, India, said the campaign aims to shine a light not only on the care gap between nations but within countries too.

A Lebanese nurse treats a Syrian man at a medical charity clinic in the northern port city of Tripoli. Syrian refugees in Lebanon lack access to specialised medical care such as dialysis and cancer treatment. AP

“By 2030, it is estimated that 75 per cent of all premature deaths due to cancer will occur in low and middle-income countries. Importantly, this care gap is not only between high and low-resource settings,” he said.

“Disparities exist within most countries among different populations due to discrimination or assumptions that encompass age, cultural contexts, gender norms, sexual orientation, ethnicity, income, education levels and lifestyle issues. These factors potentially reduce a person’s chance of surviving cancer – and they can and must be addressed.”

How is the gap costing lives?

Half the world’s 7.9 billion inhabitants lack access to a full range of essential health services, including cancer treatment and management.

The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated the situation and two years on from the beginning of the crisis more than half a billion people have been pushed or pushed further into extreme poverty due to healthcare costs.

While scientific advancements are causing the survival rates for many cancers to rise exponentially, the effects are not being felt in developing nations. Many people in low and middle-income countries are unable to effectively access adequate cancer care, even when the infrastructure and expertise exist. This is what the Union for International Cancer Control refers to the “equity gap”, which is costing lives.

While inequity is usually measured in terms of the unequal distribution of health or resources, there exists an array of underlying factors known as the “social determinants of health”.

These include income, education, geographical location, national resources, gender norms and cultural bias. Discrimination and assumptions based on a person’s race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability and lifestyle also play a part.

The groups with the biggest disadvantages are also more likely to have increased exposure to additional risk factors, such as tobacco and an unhealthy diet.

Figures released by the WHO last year showed the stark differences in cancer care between nations in the Middle East and North Africa region.

What are the campaign’s aims?

· Push the global community into acknowledging and addressing the social determinants of health that make up barriers to care

· Develop person-centred, inclusive public health policies tailored to different ethnicities, genders, age groups etc

· Introduce national cancer control plans

· Establish robust data registries that provide public health authorities with a clear picture of a country’s cancer burden and needs

· Provide accommodation, childcare support and transport to health services for rural communities

· Expand the use of technology to beat cancer including mobile screening units and self-sampling test kits