Quad Cancer Moonshot: PM announces $7.5 million aid to fight cervical cancer

The Cancer Moonshot project has sparked significant action across the U.S. government and the public and private sectors, laying a strong foundation for future work (Photo: Shutterstock)

4 minutes reading time Last updated: September 22, 2024 | 8:31 a.m. IST

Highlighting India’s vision of ‘One Earth, One Health’, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (local time) announced support of USD 7.5 million for sampling kits, detection kits and vaccines in countries to fight cervical cancer.

At the Cancer Moonshot event in Delaware, Prime Minister Modi highlighted India’s initiatives to combat cervical cancer and said India was ready to share its experience and expertise.

He also emphasized an “integrated approach of prevention, screening, diagnosis and treatment” to reduce the burden of cancer.

The Cancer Moonshot is a White House initiative to renew leadership in the fight against cancer, facilitate new collaborations, and drive progress across the cancer journey by engaging all facets of the cancer community—federal agencies and departments, private companies, health care providers, patient groups, philanthropies, and all Americans.

“I would like to thank President Biden for hosting this event. It reflects our shared commitment to providing affordable, accessible and quality healthcare. During the COVID pandemic, we launched the Quad Vaccine Initiative for the Indo-Pacific and I am happy that as a Quad, we have decided to jointly address challenges like cervical cancer. In cancer treatment, collaboration is key to cure,” Prime Minister Modi said.

“An integrated approach of prevention, screening, diagnosis and treatment is needed to reduce the burden of cancer. In India, a highly cost-effective cervical cancer screening programme is underway,” he added.

The Prime Minister said India has developed its own vaccine against the disease and new treatment protocols are being introduced using AI. He also said a highly cost-effective cervical cancer screening programme is underway in the country.

“Along with this, India runs the largest health insurance system in the world and special centres have also been set up to make medicines available to all at an affordable cost. India has also developed its own vaccine for cervical cancer and new treatment protocols are also being introduced with the help of artificial intelligence,” the Prime Minister said.

“India is ready to share its experience and expertise. Today, many Indian experts working in the field of cancer treatment have joined us at this event. India’s vision is One Earth One Health. I am announcing support of sampling kits, detection kits and vaccines worth $7.5 million,” he added.

Prime Minister Modi also announced that India would cooperate in radiotherapy treatment and capacity building and contribute 40 million doses of vaccines to Indo-Pacific countries under GAVI and QUAD initiatives.

“India will also cooperate in the field of radiotherapy treatment and capacity building. I am happy that India is contributing 40 million doses of vaccine to the countries of the Indo-Pacific region under the GAVI and QUAD initiatives. These 40 million doses of vaccine will become a ray of hope in the lives of millions of people. As you can see, when QUAD acts, it is not just for nations. This is the true essence of our human-centric approach,” PM Modi added.

The Cancer Moonshot has sparked significant action across the U.S. government and across the public and private sectors, laying a strong foundation for future work. To date, the Cancer Moonshot has announced more than 95 new programs, policies, and resources to address five priority actions. 170 private companies, nonprofits, academic institutions, and patient groups have also stepped up their actions and collaborations.

The U.S. Embassy in New Delhi hosted the first-ever U.S.-India Cancer Dialogue, which was held on August 5-6 at the National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi, under the auspices of the Department of Biotechnology (DBT). The dialogue focused on cancer, strengthening U.S.-India cooperation in biomedical research, and co-developing solutions to improve the health and well-being of the global community.

(Only the headline and image of this report may have been reworked by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First published: September 22, 2024 | 8:30 a.m. IST