Ten years of bringing hope to cancer patients in Albania with IAEA support

Cancer is a major public health problem in Albania. According to the Ministry of Health, the disease has become the second most important cause of death, after cardiovascular disease accounting for 27% of all deaths last year.

“About 7000 new cancer cases are reported in the country every year and it is estimated that at least 50% of these patients will need radiotherapy treatment”, said Orges Spahis, Chief of the Radiation Oncology Department at the “Mother Teresa” Centre.

The lack of proper cancer care equipment and facilities means that many patients are left untreated. Radiation therapy machines are an essential part of effective cancer treatment, but they are expensive to acquire and maintain, and also require specialized treatment of medical staff.

“Mother Teresa”, which treats 90% of all cancer cases, is the only public hospital that provides radiation therapy treatment in this country of 3.3 million people.

The IAEA and Albania’s government joined forces ten years ago to support the hospital and have paid for the installation of this latest machine as well.

“The IAEA has assisted with drafting a national cancer control programme in Albania and the commissioning of nuclear medicine and radiotherapy machines since the establishment of the first radiotherapy unit at the hospital in 1966. It has also trained medical staff in machine handling and radiation safety”, said Minister of Health Ogerta Manastirliu.

Over the last few years, the hospital has expanded treatment techniques from cobalt teletherapy to linear accelerators, allowing doctors to treat complex cases faster and with more precision.

Original source: IAEA
Published on 5 October 2018