A team of international cancer leaders have published a manifesto that highlights the immediate course of action needed to address the detrimental effects of armed conflict on cancer care, treatment, and prevention.
The manifesto, titled Manifesto on Improving Cancer Care in Conflict-Impacted Populations, has been published in The Lancet.
Increasingly, as wars across the world continue to escalate, people with cancer face an ever-growing series of urgent challenges in conflict-affected regions, falling victim to the collateral damage of war on hospitals, on the healthcare supply chain, and the massive displacement of patients that war creates.
The authors call for international collaboration to develop context-specific cancer services in acute humanitarian emergencies and in long-term conflict settings such as Ukraine and Palestine amongst others. They hope this manifesto will deliver immediate solutions that address the needs of the millions of cancer patients worldwide who are displaced by the consequences of war.
The manifesto sets out seven key priorities to ensure cancer services are preserved during conflict, including that the Geneva Convention is fully respected in protecting medical personnel, in prohibiting attacks against medical units, and in preserving the rights of sick people, including those diagnosed with cancer. These seven key priorities are:
- First, to advocate and demand unequivocally that the Geneva Convention is fully respected and without permissive policies, in protecting medical personnel, in prohibiting attacks against medical units, and in preserving the rights of sick people, including those diagnosed with cancer.
- Second, to promote the inclusion of cancer and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in humanitarian settings into the political agendas of the United Nations, including the fourth high level meeting on NCDs.
- Third, to create a working group through WHO, to define and support implementation and monitoring of approaches to maintain cancer care in conflict-affected populations, including through research.
- Fourth, to advance inclusive strategies and care models for cancer patients in humanitarian settings, addressing the complexity of cancer, the specific requirements for palliative care, and the distinct needs of different age groups, including children with cancer and blood disorders.
- Fifth, to develop and support implementation of context-specific strategies to deliver better cancer care for conflict-impacted populations, by establishing online coordination platforms, mechanisms for blended financing, and priorities for technical support.
- Sixth, in cooperation with key stakeholders, to publish a report on the state of cancer care in conflict-affected regions once every 2 years, including progress updates in particular settings, emerging best practices, and recommendations, and incorporate such content into relevant WHO reports, such as the WHO Global Status Report on Cancer 2025.
- Seventh, to establish cancer care as a core pillar of an emergency response plan in all conflict settings and request due investments in cancer services to promote access, rebuild cancer care infrastructure, and coordinate workforce capacity-building, including by international cooperation.
The experts also recommend the creation of a working group through the World Health Organisation (WHO), to implement and monitor cancer care in conflict-affected populations, including through cancer research.
Commenting on the Manifesto, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) and a co-author on the paper said: ‘Cancer doesn’t stop during humanitarian emergencies, but ensuring continuity of cancer care is extremely challenging when health systems and services break down during conflict and other crises. In February this year, WHO hosted a global meeting on non-communicable diseases in humanitarian settings in Copenhagen, drawing attention to the need to build resilient health systems that can deliver essential services for cancer and NCDs, even in the most difficult circumstances.’
ICPCN are part of the recently established Emergencies and Crises Network of the European Cancer Organisation (ECO) which was established to help create more resilient healthcare systems that can effectively respond to future crises. It is a network where cancer professionals and patient advocates can exchange ideas, learn from past emergencies and propose best practices quickly. Prof Mark Lawler, Co-chair of this network was one of the expert authors of this manifesto.
This article was based on an article on the ECO website published on the 2nd August 2024.