Ensuring access to, and continuity of cancer care, for patients with cancer during health emergencies
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 194 Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO) are negotiating an international instrument - generally referred to as the ‘Pandemic Agreement’ - to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
Key components of the instrument aim to strengthen the coordinating role of the WHO, increase the resilience of health systems, and unite collective action around the principles of equity, inclusivity, and coherence for worldwide assistance and distribution of essential medical goods, including vaccines. Simultaneously, the WHO has coordinated amendments to the 2005 International Health Regulations (IHR). Both instruments are intended to regulate a coordinated global effort for national and international responses to health emergencies, and to increase health security. The amended IHR were adopted by the Member States at the 77th World Health Assembly in May 2024. The negotiations to finish the Pandemic Agreement are expected to conclude by the 78th World Health Assembly (WHA78) in May 2025.
ESMO has been and continues to consistently contribute to consultations on both instruments, highlighting the following key asks:
- Strengthen health systems preparedness at secondary and tertiary care levels;
- Ensure robust referrals across the continuum of care during and beyond health emergencies;
- Guarantee timely and affordable access to care from primary, secondary and tertiary levels , where patients with cancer are predominately treated;
- Build-up, protect, and resource adequately the healthcare workforce;
- Enable continuance of active clinical trials.
The IHR are legally binding under international law, unless a state proactively files rejections or reservations within a 10-month period after their adoption. The prospective adoption of the Pandemic Agreement at WHA78 will not give it international legal effect until an as yet undetermined number of countries ratify, at which point it will become part of international law, binding those countries that have agreed to it.