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The need to build on recent progressPrioritising the underprovided: in Latin
America those living in large urban areas
tend to receive at least adequate care, while
those on the periphery do not. Innovation
should be incentivised to develop mechanisms
to reach the underprovided, even with
limited resources. Examples of this are the
strengthening of primary health networks
or the use of technology, such as telehealth
oncology services.
Patient-centred services: although
healthcare systems are extremely complex,
and there is no easy fix, principles of patient-
centred care should be higher on the agenda,
thereby guiding processes of reform. They
should be considered in designing sector
incentives, processes and structures that
ultimately benefit people and healthcare
outcomes through the care continuum.
A first step in this direction should be
the involvement of patients and patient
organisations in policy design and decision-
making processes.Resource planning: there are important
achievements in funding prioritisation for
healthcare in most countries, but resource
planning needs to be generally more co-
ordinated to live up to UHC commitments.
Both the amount and the efficiency of
investments are crucial. Securing funds for
cancer through legislation can help as well
as co-ordinated efforts for medicine and
equipment purchases.Greater multi-sector collaboration: there
are many stakeholders working on the cancer
response, but a lack of co-ordination is evident
across countries. From the cancer planning
stage there should be platforms for multi-
stakeholder participation and consensus.
This may help in defining responsibilities and
building strong governance.