Management of cancer

Each year, more than 2.3 million people are diagnosed with cancer in the South East Asia Region and about 1.4 million die of the disease. Cancers of Lungs, Breast and Cervix together cause more than 400,000 deaths annually.  The case fatality rates are higher due to late-stage presentation and difficult access to treatment.

To save lives and reduce suffering of children with cancer, the Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer seeks to increase countries’ capacity to provide quality services for children with cancer and prioritize childhood cancer nationally, regionally and globally to spark action. The region has established a network of practice of institutions, the South-East Asia Regional Childhood Cancer Network (SEAR-CCN) to promote collaboration and exchange of evidence based best practices. The region has also been supporting activities with focus on specific country needs in childhood cancer.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer, and the leading cause of cancer death among women worldwide and in South-East Asia Region.

The World Health Organisation’s  Global Breast Cancer Initiative (GBCI), established in 2021, brings together stakeholders from around the world and across sectors with the joint goal of reducing breast cancer mortality.

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women in the region. The WHO Executive Board in February 2020 and the Seventy-third World Health Assembly in May 2020 adopted a Global Strategy to accelerate the elimination of cervical cancer as a public health problem, urging the Member States to reach the interim goals and targets by 2030 to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem. The region has developed an implementation framework in alignment with the strategy.