On International Childhood Cancer Day 2026, PAHO highlights measurable progress in early diagnosis, access to medicines, and regional cooperation—urging countries to continue strengthening national responses.
Washington, D.C., February 13, 2026 - Measurable impact on childhood cancer care is happening across multiple countries in the Region, resulting from continued technical work led by PAHO, Ministries of Health, and strategic partners such as St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (St. Jude). The benefits translate into increased earlier diagnosis, expanded access to life-saving medicines and a robust body of open access technical resources that are strengthening care across the healthcare continuum.
Building on concrete progress through regional and country-level cooperation, PAHO will present these achievements and resources at the “From Evidence to Action: Regional Tools to Improve Childhood Cancer Care” webinar scheduled for International Childhood Cancer Day. The event calls upon Member States to scale-up and sustain efforts to improve early diagnosis, timely treatment, and quality of care for children and adolescents with cancer, building on concrete progress achieved through regional and country-level cooperation.
Earlier diagnosis is becoming a reality in countries
Several countries are showing clear improvements in early diagnosis outcomes as a result of strengthened policies, clinical guidance, training, and awareness efforts supported by PAHO.
In Peru, with national efforts supported by PAHO technical cooperation average time to diagnosis for children and adolescents with cancer reduced from 107 to 57 days, enabling earlier access to treatment. In Panama, the 50% reduction in cases diagnosed at advanced stages was achieved, leading overall to earlier detection and timely referral within the health system.
Beyond Peru and Panama, work continues with multiple countries across Latin America and the Caribbean to strengthen early diagnosis policies, guidelines, referral pathways, and community awareness as part of the WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer (GICC).
Timely access to life-saving medicines for children with cancer
Access to essential medicines remains a cornerstone of effective childhood cancer care. Since February 2025, more than 300 children and adolescents with cancer in Ecuador have received treatment through the Global Platform for Access to Childhood Cancer Medicines (Global Platform), a joint initiative of WHO and St. Jude, in collaboration with PAHO, and UNICEF.
To date, 5 public hospitals in Ecuador are receiving medicines, that treat the majority of childhood cancers, including leukemias and solid tumors. In 2026, the number of children receiving medicines through the Global Platform is expected to double, reaching 10 hospitals in Ecuador and El Salvador, with a total investment surpassing 3.3 M USD, covering over 70 different medicines and formulations for chemotherapy and supportive care.
“The Global Platform has strengthened much more than access to medicines. It has helped articulate the entire supply chain, from planning and procurement to timely delivery at hospitals, while reinforcing the health system as a whole. This includes the incorporation of essential childhood cancer medicines into the basic benefits package, the development of national regulations and clinical management protocols, and the training of health professionals to ensure quality and continuity of care for children with cancer”, said María José Pinto, Constitutional Vicepresident of Ecuador and highest authority of the Ministry of Public Health.
PAHO provides technical cooperation for the operational implementation of the Global Platform, working closely with national authorities, hospitals, and partners, and through the PAHO Regional Revolving Funds to strengthen systematic demand quantification, supply chain planning, logistics, and system-wide sustainability that can be scaled to other therapeutic areas.
Thanks to agreements reached through the Global Platform, additional countries across the Americas are now accessing the same high‑quality childhood cancer medicines, including 6 high‑priced oncology products, 5 additional cancer medicines, and 3 essential medical devices for cancer management. In 2025 alone, eleven public health entities from 9 countries procured cancer‑related products to address pediatric and national needs through the Revolving Funds.
Open-access resources strengthening care across the continuum
To support countries and health teams, 17 regional clinical guidelines and technical resources have been developed through cooperation between PAHO/WHO, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and strategic partners. This work was underpinned by the creation of an extensive regional pediatric cancer network and multiple technical working groups, which brought together country experts and stakeholders. All resources are available at no cost on the CureAll Americas platform in Spanish, English and Portuguese.
These resources address the full continuum of childhood cancer care, including early diagnosis and treatment, pediatric palliative care, nutrition and oral health, psychosocial support, and survivorship care (long-term follow up), among others.
“Making high-quality, evidence-based resources openly available helps countries accelerate the implementation of childhood cancer policies and strengthens care where it is most needed,” noted Liliana Vasquez, Childhood cancer technical officer at PAHO. “These tools are designed to be adapted and implemented across diverse health systems.”
About the Global Platform
The Global Platform for Access to Childhood Cancer Medicines (Global Platform) was conceived in 2021 by St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and WHO, which jointly developed the initiative to complement the Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer, in collaboration with UNICEF and the Pan American Health Organization Strategic Fund as procurement agents. The Global Platform aims to provide an uninterrupted supply of quality-assured cancer medicines to approximately 120 000 children in low- and middle-income countries in the next five to seven years, with the expectation of scaling up supplies in future years. The Global Platform provides end-to-end support in consolidating global demand to shape the market, and assists countries with the selection of medicines, development of treatment standards and the building of information systems to track that effective care is being provided.
At present, the Global Platform is working with 12 participating countries: Ecuador, El Salvador, Ghana, Jordan, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan and Zambia.
