Program of Action for Cancer Therapy (PACT)

Tanzania, Nicaragua, Albania

The project aimed to raise global public awareness of cancer and to mobilize new resources for expanded cancer treatment. Community networks, civil society, local authorities, as well as the involvement of relevant Ministry of Health professionals and leadership throughout the project implementation will be continued and contribute to sustain the palliative care in the targeted countries. Albania: The project has created national breast cancer awareness campaigns in addition to having provided advanced training for more than 600 healthcare professionals at the primary health care level, while providing for several selected specialists in cancer diagnoses and treatment to have been trained abroad. Informational packages containing four brochures for breast cancer survivors were printed and more than 1000 were distributed strategically, and more than 60 health professionals throughout the country have been formally trained in the information contained in the brochures. Involvement of a large number of national and regional stakeholders, including the Prime Minister as well as other Ministers has ensured that these efforts will provide the needed foundation for further strengthening nationally as well as being a sustainable initiative. Nicaragua: The project aimed to facilitate women's access to health services for the early detection of cervical cancer and follow up on pre-cancerous lesions, and to ensure the early detection and diagnosis. This project covered several Local Comprehensive Health Care Systems (SILAIS) in Nicaragua primarily focusing on poor and remote communities with limited access to health services mainly at the SILAIS and municipal level. This was achieved through: • An increase in the number of trained professionals for the early detection of cervical and paediatric cancers and the decentralization of treatment services. Over 500 health professionals were trained in SILAIS and municipalities covering a large proportion of the rural population in Nicaragua. • Screening of 32,000 women in several SILAIS, and • Strengthening of community support networks through training of over 250 community leaders and the training of over 278 parents in recognizing paediatric cancer signs and symptoms and the widespread dissemination of educational material on the early detection of women and paediatric cancers. Tanzania: Has about 19,000 new cancer patients every year a single specialist cancer hospital, the Ocean Road Cancer Institute (ORCI) in Dar es Salaam, which offers three cancer treatment modalities (surgical, radiation and medical oncology). ORCI oncologists estimate that around 80% of the cancer patients that seek help at ORCI present too late and therefore for an overwhelming majority, treatment is with palliative intent only. And. Notable highlights from this project include: • Over 300 health care and community workers received palliative care training; • Decentralized palliative care training in zonal hospitals • Establishment of over 60 palliative care teams in zonal hospitals • Over 50 health care facilities have morphine available for patients (compared to four in 2010) • Development and wide dissemination of policy guidelines for palliative care Insufficient training of health professionals was identified as a major obstacle to the scaled up provision of palliative care. Necessary training was adapted and provided to Tanzania's health care context. In addition the project further improved palliative care policy implementation and awareness building among government decision makers and further strengthened decentralized palliative care services. Coordinator of non-communicable disease at the Ministry of Health acknowledged that palliative care will be offered at both regional and districts hospitals across the country.