The World Health Organization, together with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the United States, has launched an international program for free supplies of anti-cancer medicines for children. The medicines have already been delivered to Mongolia and Uzbekistan, and will be received in the coming period by Nepal, Jordan, Ecuador, and Zambia. In 2025, the plan is to reach 5,000 children with treatment, and by 2032 to up to 120,000 children across 50 countries.
The program is intended to address the problem of unequal access to treatment. In resource-limited countries—where about 90% of children with cancer live—less than 30% of patients survive, compared with more than 80% in wealthy countries. The main reasons are the unavailability of modern medicines and diagnostic methods, as well as weak incentives for pharmaceutical companies to enter rapidly growing markets. The new initiative takes these challenges into account and offers a systemic solution, including medicine supply, training, and the development of infrastructure.
The program developed by St. Jude is based on the clinic’s long-standing experience. Over six decades, the clinic’s work has increased the survival rate of children with cancer from 20% to 80%. As James Downing, the clinic director, noted, the goal of the initiative is “to ensure that no child dies just because they were born in the wrong country.”
