Panel Urges Fight Against Cancer In Poor Countries At Clinton Global Initiative
(RTTNews) - A special session at the Clinton Global Initiative summit in New York
Studies have shown that almost two-thirds of the deaths from cancer will occur in developing countries. Researchers have predicted that this proportion could reach three-quarters before 2050.
"Poor people are getting shafted when they don't have access to proven remedies," said Paul Farmer, co-Founder of Partners In Health and Harvard's Chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine.
Farmer, who is also the UN Deputy Special Envoy for Haiti, urged a global fund for cancer prevention and care.
Changing attitudes about cancer in the developing world remains a major challenge, said Felicia Knaul, Director of the Harvard Global Equity Initiative.
For instance, women fear being rejected by their husbands if they lose a breast, so they resist detection and treatment.
"The real cancer we face is the cancer of stigma and discrimination," said Knaul.
The perception that cancer is always fatal must be fought, said Jordan's Princess Dina Mired, Director General, King Hussein Cancer Foundation.
In the developing world, survival rates are low enough that many doubt they will survive, and don't want to bear the cost or stigma of treatment.
"We want to give the message that you can survive cancer," Dina Mired said. "Nobody listens to early detection messages until they see survivors."
The panel, which included cyclist and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong, highlighted a number of major commitments to fight cancer.
Noting that tobacco is the leading cause of cancer in the western world, a corporate donor pledged 15 million dollars over the next five year to prevent smoking in sub-Saharan Africa, where lung cancer rates are still relatively low.
by RTT Staff Writer
