Rays of Hope
Since the Rays of Hope initiative began on World Cancer Day in 2022, the ‘first wave’ countries of Benin, Chad, DRC, Kenya, Malawi, Niger, and Senegal have received a range of key radiotherapy and medical imaging machines – as well as training for the medical professionals needed to operate the equipment and provide safe and timely diagnostic and treatment services. The IAEA has six decades of experience in helping countries fight cancer, including in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO). The assistance provided by the IAEA has enabled many countries to establish and/or strengthen safe, secure and effective radiation medicine (radiotherapy, radiology and nuclear medicine) capabilities.
While in high-income countries nearly all patients have access to radiotherapy, in middle-income countries fewer than 60 percent do. In low-income countries, the figure drops to just only one in ten people with access to this life-saving treatment.
Integrated cancer care can help to prevent one third of all cancers, including some of the most common forms such as cervical, breast, head and neck, and colorectal cancers. Investments in diagnosis and treatment can enable diseases to be detected early and treated appropriately. The most prominent types of cancer in the DRC are prostate cancer in men with around 7471 new cases annually, and cervical cancer in women with around 7772 new cases per year, according to the online cancer statistics database GLOBOCAN.
