CureAll Americas

September 2018: Launch of Global Initiative WHO against Childhood Cancer. The goal is to achieve at least 60% survival for boys and girls with cancer globally by 2030.

June 2019: Peru was named as the first focal country of the CureAll Americas Initiative. Thanks to the joint work between the Ministry of Health of Peru, PAHO/WHO, St Jude Global, and prominent actors, the implementation of the CureAll Americas technical package began in Peru.

October 2019: Approval of the National Pediatric Cancer Plan of El Salvador. Being the first National Plan on pediatric cancer in the region and under the leadership of the Ministry of Health.

December 2019: Launch of the Subregional Pediatric Cancer Strategy in Central America. As a joint effort by COMISCA, PAHO/WHO, and St Jude, a subregional regulatory document on pediatric cancer was developed and approved.

February 2020: 1st Subregional Workshop on Childhood Cancer in the Caribbean. Based in Trinidad and Tobago, representatives from 9 Caribbean countries met to define priorities on childhood cancer.

June 2020: Approval of the National Cancer Plan in Panama. Under the leadership of the Ministry of Health and with the support of PAHO/WHO, the national regulatory plan for children and adults with cancer was developed.

September 2020: Approval of the Childhood Cancer Law in Peru. Law No. 31041 guarantees timely detection and comprehensive quality care of children and adolescents with oncological diseases in Peru.

June 2021: Formation of CureAll Americas regional working groups. With the aim of addressing the problems associated with higher mortality from childhood cancer in the region, 7 regional working groups were formed with more than 200 professionals from 17 countries.

August 2021: How I Live Workshop in Central America, Dominican Republic, and Haiti. Thanks to the collaboration with Persistent Productions and Harvard Humanitarian, a subregional event was developed to establish priorities on childhood cancer.

September 2021: Launch of the Virtual Course on Early Diagnosis of Childhood Cancer. In commemoration of September, Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, educational materials aimed at health professionals were launched on the PAHO Public Health Virtual Campus, available in Spanish, English, and Portuguese. Launch of the Virtual Course on Early Diagnosis of Childhood Cancer. In commemoration of September, Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, educational materials aimed at health professionals were launched on the PAHO Virtual Public Health Campus, available in Spanish, English, and Portuguese.

Publication of Childhood Cancer Profiles of countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. As part of the coordinated work in the countries, childhood cancer profiles were prepared with base indicators at the national, subregional, and regional levels.

October 2021: 2nd Subregional Workshop on Childhood Cancer in the Caribbean. In virtual mode, representatives from 9 Caribbean countries followed up on short and medium-term actions at the national and subregional level on childhood cancer.

November 2021: Peru announces the decrease in abandonment of childhood cancer treatment. Thanks to the hard work of multiple collaborators, the Ministry of Health of Peru announced a decrease in childhood cancer abandonment from 18% to 8.5%.

February 2022: Launch of the #DecideATime Campaign. In commemoration of February 15, International Childhood Cancer Day, audiovisual materials were developed with the objective of reducing the treatment abandonment rate and improving adherence to treatment for childhood cancer in Peru, Bolivia and Haiti.

March 2022: Publication of Quality of Life Series in pediatric oncology patients. In Spanish and Portuguese, 08 guide modules are available aimed at parents and caregivers of children with cancer, in collaboration with St Jude Together and the St Jude Global Palliative Care team.

April 2022: Panama publishes the National Regulations on Timely Diagnosis of Childhood Cancer. With the technical collaboration of PAHO/WHO, the National Guide for Timely Diagnosis of Cancer in Children and Adolescents is published. A face-to-face Workshop was also held in the country.

Launch of a childhood cancer early detection tool in Colombia. The “Early Childhood Tool” is a leading online resource for primary care professionals who care for children.

July 2022: Publication of the review of the scope of practice in pediatric oncology nursing. As an initiative of the PAHO/WHO team and in collaboration with a regional group of experts, the review of the scope of practice in pediatric oncology nursing in Latin America and the Caribbean is published.

October 2023:  Launch of the special supplement of the Pan American Journal of Public Health on childhood cancer. This special supplement highlights the joint accomplishments of the Pan American Sanitary Bureau, St. Jude Children´s Research Hospital, and the Member States and reminds us that there is still a long way to go to ensure full implementation of the WHO CureAll framework in the Americas