Cancer Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Ensuring High Quality From the Start

Author(s):  
Kirtika Patel ◽  
R. Matthew Strother ◽  
Francis Ndiangui ◽  
David Chumba ◽  
William Jacobson ◽  
...  

Background: Cancer is becoming a major cause of mortality in low- and middle-income countries. Unlike infectious disease, malignancy and other chronic conditions require significant supportive infrastructure for diagnostics, staging and treatment. In addition to morphologic diagnosis, diagnostic pathways in oncology frequently require immunohistochemistry (IHC) for confirmation. We present the experience of a tertiary-care hospital serving rural western Kenya, which developed and validated an IHC laboratory in support of a growing cancer care service.Objectives, methods and outcomes: Over the past decade, in an academic North-South collaboration, cancer services were developed for the catchment area of Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in western Kenya. A major hurdle to treatment of cancer in a resource-limited setting has been the lack of adequate diagnostic services. Building upon the foundations of a histology laboratory, strategic investment and training were used to develop IHC services. Key elements of success in this endeavour included: translation of resource-rich practices to are source-limited setting, such as using manual, small-batch IHC instead of disposable- and maintenance-intensive automated machinery, engagement of outside expertise to develop reagent-efficient protocols and supporting all levels of staff to meet the requirements of an external quality assurance programme.Conclusion: Development of low- and middle-income country models of services, such as the IHC laboratory presented in this paper, is critical for the infrastructure in resource-limited settings to address the growing cancer burden. We provide a low-cost model that effectively develops these necessary services in a challenging laboratory environment.


BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. e034960
Author(s):  
Gavin Wooldridge ◽  
Srinivas Murthy ◽  
Niranjan Kissoon

IntroductionSepsis is the leading cause of death in children worldwide and has recently been declared a major global health issue. New interventions and a concerted effort to enhance our understanding of sepsis are required to address the huge burden of disease, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) where it is highest. An opportunity therefore exists to ensure that ongoing research in this area is relevant to all stakeholders and is of consistently high quality. One method to address these issues is through the development of a core outcome set (COS).Methods and analysisThis study protocol outlines the phases in the development of a core outcome set for paediatric sepsis in LMIC. The first step involves performing a systematic review of all outcomes reported in the research of paediatric sepsis in low middle-income countries. A three-stage international Delphi process will then invite a broad range of participants to score each generated outcome for inclusion into the COS. This will include an initial two-step online survey and finally, a face-to-face consensus meeting where each outcome will be reviewed, voted on and ratified for inclusion into the COS.Ethics and disseminationNo core outcome sets exist for clinical trials in paediatric sepsis. This COS will serve to not only highlight the heavy burden of paediatric sepsis in this setting and aid collaboration and participation between all stakeholders, but to promote ongoing essential high quality and relevant research into the topic. A COS in paediatric sepsis in LMIC will advocate for a common language and facilitate interpretation of findings from a variety of settings. A waiver for ethics approval has been granted by University of British Columbia Children’s and Women’s Research Ethics Board.


2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (6) ◽  
pp. 477-480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörg Haier ◽  
Jonathan Sleeman ◽  
Jürgen Schäfers

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduardo Cazap ◽  
Ian Magrath ◽  
T. Peter Kingham ◽  
Ahmed Elzawawy

Noncommunicable diseases are now recognized by the United Nations and WHO as a major public health crisis. Cancer is a main part of this problem, and health care systems are facing a great challenge to improve cancer care, control costs, and increase systems efficiency. The disparity in access to care and outcomes between high-income countries and low- and middle-income countries is staggering. The reasons for this disparity include cost, access to care, manpower and training deficits, and a lack of awareness in the lay and medical communities. Diagnosis and treatment play an important role in this complex environment. In different regions and countries of the world, a variety of health care systems are in place, but most of them are fragmented or poorly coordinated. The need to scale up cancer care in the low- and middle-income countries is urgent, and this article reviews many of the structural mechanisms of the problem, describes the current situation, and proposes ways for improvement. The organization of cancer services is also included in the analysis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (21) ◽  
pp. 11758
Author(s):  
Giulia Oggero ◽  
Louise Puli ◽  
Emma Maria Smith ◽  
Chapal Khasnabis

Global participation at the Paralympic Games has been steadily growing in the past 60 years. However, inequities in relation to geographic representation of Paralympians, sex representation, access to assistive technology, and medal success remain. The objectives of this research are to describe and compare trends in Paralympians’ participation and achievements in the Summer Paralympic Games by income level and sex, including in events requiring assistive products (wheelchairs, hand cycles/trikes, and prostheses). A retrospective secondary analysis of publicly available data was conducted. Participation, sex, and medal tally data were extracted from data available on the International Paralympic Committee website and archives. Data regarding income and population were collected from publicly available data available from the World Bank website. Participation in the Summer Paralympic Games differs significantly by income level (p = 0.000) with high- income countries sending, on average, more Paralympians than low- and middle-income countries. There is a significant difference between male and female participation (p = 0.00), with approximately 29% of all Paralympians being female. High-income countries demonstrate significantly higher achievement than low- and middle-income countries (p = 0.000), including in events requiring assistive products (p = 0.007). Despite growth in overall participation, low- and middle-income countries remain severely underrepresented in both participation and achievement at the Paralympic Games, especially in the events that require high quality assistive products to succeed. More equitable participation and achievement in the Paralympics may be supported by addressing the barriers for females, for people from low- and low-middle income countries, and for those without access to high quality assistive products required.


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