We would like to honour ๐๐ซ. ๐๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ง-๐๐ฎ๐ข, ๐๐, one of the longest supporters of Viva Foundation has recently published an article in JAMA Oncology. We here at Viva would like to celebrate his achievement and share a summary of his article with all of our supporters.
๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ง๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐๐จ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฅ๐๐ซ๐๐ง ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ซ
๐๐ฆ ๐ท๐. ๐ถโ๐๐๐-๐ป๐๐ ๐๐ข๐, ๐๐ท & ๐ท๐. ๐ฝ๐๐๐-๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐, ๐๐ท
In the article Dr Pui highlights the tumultuous challenges faced in making curative therapy more available to children living in low-income countries, and to this end he recommends a multi-layered strategy that puts cancer centres, philanthropists, charity organizations and government agencies to address issues that go beyond medicine, such as socioeconomic hardships faced by people in countries with limited resources.
He recounts on the amazing domino-effect that began in 2003 when he found out that that most children in China with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) abandoned treatment mainly for financial reasons and that only 30% of the patients in rural areas were treated with curative intent, St Jude put into effect a cost-friendly treatment protocol to help underprivileged children with the risk of ALL who could not afford treatment. As the years go on, more welfare initiatives were included inside the protocol such as palliative care, infection control, nursing education and housing benefits. This effect of this snowball went on to draw in the attention of THE Ministry of Health of the Peopleโs Republic of China, who was amid the development of a healthcare reform in 2009. This traction eventually resulted in the availability of treatment for some 10,000 Chinese children suffering from ALL.
Dr. Pui paints us the picture that the battle with cancer is one against a hydra; where in poorer countries not only is the quality of treatment important, but also the affordability to the less fortunate which might also be correlated to a plethora of other factors such as governmental infrastructure, policies, etc. With each progress we make, we cut off a head and suture the wound, making our ongoing battle with the deadliest of all maladies difficult, but hopeful. It is a monumental undertaking to be sure, but we are getting there, slowly, but surely.
๐๐จ๐ง๐ ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ซ. ๐๐ฎ๐ข ๐จ๐ง ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ฌ๐ก๐๐!
If you'd like to read the full article, you may do so at the below link! (*๐ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฉ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ง๐๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ ๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ซ๐๐ช๐ฎ๐ข๐ซ๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐๐๐๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฅ๐)
