ASCO and ESMO urge governments to improve cancer care and reduce deaths

The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) and the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the world's two leading organizations for oncology professionals, today issued a joint statement calling upon governments to renew political commitment to improve cancer services and reduce cancer deaths.

The statement was issued on the occasion of the United Nations Civil Society Hearing on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in New York.

"As cancer doctors we work hard every day to ensure that patients receive the best possible care," said Alexandru Eniu, Chair of the ESMO Global Policy Committee. "We are progressively increasing our knowledge about cancer and how to treat it. We can even cure some cancers if we intervene early enough."

"However, in many countries access to even the most inexpensive essential cancer medicines and priority medical devices is lacking," warned Eniu. "We urgently need governments to work with us and ensure that we have enough oncology professionals, and the necessary resources, to apply our knowledge and save lives."

ESMO President, Josep Tabernero added, "Recent UN and WHO reports note that unless countries significantly scale-up their actions and investments, they will not meet agreed targets to reduce deaths from non-communicable diseases. We are concerned that governments may find it easier to achieve their targets by reducing deaths from only some NCDs, leaving cancer patients behind. We believe there are cost-effective ways to improve cancer care and stand ready to assist countries in doing this by providing our expertise in cancer management to support implementation of the 2017 World Health Assembly Cancer Resolution."

"We urge Member States to consider our joint call and amendments to strengthen the Political Declaration to be approved during the UN High-Level Meeting on 27 September and thus change the future outlook for cancer patients worldwide," Tabernero concluded.