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Vietnam's cancer burden is immense. With a population of 84 million, the country is experiencing 150,000 new cases and up to 75,000 cancer deaths each year, making it the second biggest killer after cardiovascular disease. The government has responded to the growing crisis with the establishment of a National Cancer Control Programme for the period 2006-2010. But increased investment and the expansion of cancer facilities remain urgent needs.
Vietnam was launched as one of PACT's six Model Demonstration Sites (PMDS) in August 2007. In an effort to help the country develop its cancer treatment capabilities, PACT Programme Office facilitated a tripartite agreement between India, Vietnam and IAEA for India's donation of a Bhabhatron-II Cobalt teletherapy machine to Vietnam. The agreement was signed at the 51st session of the IAEA General Conference in September 2007.
The new machine will be installed in Can Tho Oncology Hospital in mid 2008. Can Tho City is located on the south bank of the Hau River, a tributary of the Mekong River in south Vietnam. The city is the biggest and the most important centre for economics, culture, science and technology in the south Mekong Delta. In this region, however, access to cancer therapy is very poor.
Located in the centre of the city, Can Tho Oncology Hospital was formerly part of Can Tho General Hospital. It has been dedicated to cancer treatment since October 2007. The oncology hospital covers the cancer needs not only of Can Tho City's two million inhabitants but also of a further 20 million people living across the region. Yet even though the hospital plays a central role in cancer therapy, it does not have a radiotherapy machine.
Those needing radiotherapy treatment must travel to the Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) cancer centre. But the five hour journey is too long and expensive an undertaking for most patients and their families. In any case, the HCMC cancer centre itself is overburdened, trying to cover the health needs of the city's eight million population.
To prepare for delivery and installation of the Bhabhatron-II at Can Tho, a member of the PACT Programme Office visited Mumbai, India in November 2007, for a demonstration of the machine at the Advanced Centre for Treatment Research and Education in Cancer (ACTREC). Visits were also made to the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and to Tata Memorial Hospital, a PACT partnership institute. A later visit was made by the PACT representative and two Indian Bhabhatron-II experts, Dr D.C. Kar and Mr K. Jarayaran, to Hanoi, HCMC and Can Tho City, where they discussed plans for installing the machine and supported technical details of the unit's transfer to the hospital. Dr. H.Q Thang, the Director of Can Tho Oncology Hospital, expressed his appreciation of the visit and support of the Indian experts.
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