Kathmandu. Nepal’s children, now, will get cancer drugs for free. 35 types of drugs used in children’s cancer will be provided free of cost.
The Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Population, Devkumari Guragai, informed that the cancer-afflicted children treated at Kanti Children’s Hospital, BP Koirala Memorial Cancer Hospital, Bhaktapur Cancer Hospital and other government and non-government hospitals will receive anti-cancer medicine for free.
Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer (GICC) in collaboration with the World Health Organization and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in America will provide drugs to Nepal without any charge.
Health Secretary Guragai informed that 35 types of medicines will be provided free of charge with the goal of curing 60 percent of cancer patients by the year 2030. Those drugs will be used according to the protocol of the World Health Organization.
For the first time, Nepal is going to get free medicine targeting children.
To advance this work, the Global Platform to Access Childhood Cancer Medicine (GPACCM) pre-launch conference was held on March 29 and 30 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
To participate in the program, a delegation including directors of Kanti Hospital and officials of the Ministry of Health went to America under the leadership of Health Secretary Dev Kumari Guragai from Nepal.
In Nepal, 300 children are treated for cancer every year in Kanti Children’s Hospital alone. It is estimated that 1,500 children suffer from various cancers every year in Nepal. GICC has started a free campaign to end cancer in Nepal and arrange for timely prevention and treatment of cancer.
In this campaign, GICC aims to save 1 million children suffering from cancer by 2030 and to cure 60% of cancer worldwide. In the first phase of this program, GICC will provide 35 types of medicines free of charge in six countries including Nepal.
