The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has helped repair Libya’s only operational radiotherapy machine after a long outage, enabling it to resume essential cancer care for hundreds of patients every month.
Responding to a request from medical authorities in the North African country, the IAEA provided assistance totalling USD 70,000 through its technical cooperation programme.
The radiotherapy machine in the Tripoli Central Hospital - which can treat more than 10,000 patients per year - broke down in September 2015. In view of the urgent health need, the IAEA procured spare parts and services from the manufacturer and the machine was brought back to operation a few weeks ago.
“Libyan doctors are now again able to treat patients, who are queuing at the hospital, after the radiotherapy machine was down for more than seven months,” said Dazhu Yang, IAEA Deputy Director General for Technical Cooperation.
Libya, like other countries, faces a growing incidence rate of cancer in coming years and needs to strengthen specialised treatment services for patients.
IAEA human health projects in Libya include assistance to review, rehabilitate and upgrade existing cancer care facilities, and to build human capacity in nuclear medicine and medical physics through education programmes and fellowship training opportunities, including in the related aspects of radiation safety and radioactive source security.
Radiotherapy is an indispensable component of cancer treatment and control. Global estimates suggest that 50 to 60 percent of all patients with cancer will need radiotherapy at some stage during treatment. However, IAEA estimates show that patients in 23 African countries have no access to radiotherapy.
The IAEA helps countries fight cancer by providing radiation medicine technology and expertise.
“The IAEA has invested nearly EUR 300 million in cancer and radiotherapy projects throughout the world,” said IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano. “Our Programme of Action for Cancer Therapy – PACT – helps countries to use limited resources efficiently and effectively.”