Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged, on September 22, announced announced the dedication of a grant of US $7.5 million to cancer testing, screening, and diagnostics in the Indo-Pacific region, as India’s contribution to the Cancer Moonshot initiative, and in keeping with India’s vision of “ONE WORLD, ONE HEALTH”.
The United States, Australia, India, and Japan launched a groundbreaking effort to help end cancer in the Indo-Pacific, starting with cervical cancer, a largely preventable disease that continues to be a major health crisis in the region, and laying the groundwork to address other forms of cancer as well, informed a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office. The Quad Cancer Moonshot will serve to strengthen the overall cancer care ecosystem in the Indo-Pacific by improving health infrastructure, expanding research collaborations, building data systems, and providing greater support for cancer prevention, detection, treatment, and care.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the Quad Cancer Moonshot event hosted by President Joseph R Biden Jr., on the sidelines of the Quad Leaders’ Summit in Wilmington, Delaware.
Cervical cancer, while preventable through vaccination and usually treatable if detected early, remains the third leading cause of cancer deaths among women in the Indo-Pacific region. Fewer than one in 10 women in the Indo-Pacific have completed their human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination series, and fewer than 10% have undergone recent screening. Many countries in the region face challenges related to healthcare access, limited resources, and disparities in vaccination rates. Through this initiative, Quad countries will work to address these gaps by promoting HPV vaccination, increasing access to screenings, and expanding treatment options and care in underserved areas. Altogether, scientific experts assessed that the Quad Cancer Moonshot will save hundreds of thousands of lives over the coming decades.
Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister deeply appreciated this thoughtful initiative of President Biden aimed at preventing, detecting and treating cervical cancer. He stated that the program would go a long way in providing affordable, accessible and quality health-care to people in Indo-Pacific countries. He noted that India was also undertaking a mass cervical cancer screening program in the country. Talking of India’s health security efforts, he mentioned that the country has developed a cervical cancer vaccine and is working on an AI based treatment protocol for the disease.
Prime Minister also announced that India will provide support for radiotherapy treatment and capacity building for cancer prevention in the Indo-Pacific. He also mentioned that Indo-Pacific countries will be benefiting from the supply of 40 million doses of vaccine from India under GAVI and QUAD programs. Prime Minister noted that when the Quad acts, it is not just for nations, it is for the people and that is the true essence of its human-centric approach.
India will also offer technical assistance to interested countries in the Indo-Pacific region on DPI for cancer screening, care and continuum through its US$ 10 million contribution to WHO’s-Global Initiative on Digital Health.
Through the Cancer Moonshot initiative, the Quad leaders committed to work together to address gaps in the cervical cancer care and treatment ecosystem in the Indo-Pacific countries.
