IAEA Receives Cancer Care Equipment from Varian for Rays of Hope Initiative

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi and Senior Vice President of Medical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer of Varian Deepak Khuntia (left) signed an agreement for the donation of a linear accelerator. (Dean Calma/IAEA)

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has received a donation of a linear accelerator from Varian, a Siemens Healthineers Company, as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen access to radiation medicine around the world.

Under the IAEA's Rays of Hope initiative, the machine will be installed at Black Lion Hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where it is expected to significantly expand the country's ability to deliver timely and effective treatments for cancer patients. Linear accelerators produce high-energy beams of electrons or X-rays to target cancerous cells and tumours.

The donation builds on IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi's visit in July to the Black Lion Hospital, where he saw firsthand the urgent need to expand access to radiotherapy. The new linear accelerator will help to address those needs, strengthening Ethiopia's capacity to deliver life-saving cancer care and advancing the IAEA's Rays of Hope initiative across Africa.

Varian's contribution was announced at the IAEA 69th General Conference side event - "Beyond Boundaries: The Rays of Hope Anchor Centre Network and the Future of Cancer Care" - featuring stakeholders from Member States, cancer institutes, professional organizations and the private sector.

"The donation from Varian exemplifies the transformative impact of partnering with purpose to deliver cancer care for all," Director General Grossi said. "By working together, we are ensuring that life-saving technologies reach the communities that need them the most."

"We are honoured to support the IAEA in its mission to expand access to life-saving cancer treatment. By donating this linear accelerator, we hope to help reduce the global disparities in cancer care and bring advanced radiotherapy to patients in low- and middle-income countries who might otherwise not have access," said Arthur Kaindl, Head of Varian. "Every patient deserves a chance at high-quality treatment, and it is our privilege to contribute to the IAEA's important work in building capacity, training clinicians and strengthening healthcare systems worldwide."

In September 2023, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Director General Grossi and Siemens Healthineers CEO Bernd Montag signed a practical arrangement agreement to support low- and middle-income countries in establishing and strengthening safe and effective radiation medicine for cancer diagnosis and therapy.

Only 21 percent of the world's countries notably met the minimum resource requirements for radiotherapy in 2022, according to data from the IAEA's DIrectory of RAdiotherapy Centres.

"Despite progress over the past decade in expanding access to radiotherapy, an essential treatment needed for half of all cancer patients at some point, equipment shortages remain a major challenge," explained May Abdel-Wahab, Director of the IAEA Division of Human Health and co-lead of the Lancet Oncology commission examining the global availability of radiotherapy and theranostics.

"On average, low-income countries need eight times the number of currently available machines just to reach the target of one per 500 patients while their middle-income counterparts need double the number of their available machines," Abdel-Wahab said.

To address this disparity, the IAEA launched Rays of Hope - a comprehensive effort to enhance access to diagnostic imaging, nuclear medicine, radiotherapy and medical physics.

Since 2022, the initiative has enabled life-saving care for thousands of patients in low- and middle-income countries through the establishment and expansion of radiation medicine services.

A global network of 18 Rays of Hope Anchor Centres - knowledge and capacity building hubs in Africa, the Asia Pacific, Europe and Latin America - is providing targeted support to neighbouring countries across education, training, research, innovation and quality assurance.

To date, over 90 countries have requested support and more than €90 million have been mobilized by donors and partners for the initiative.

Following further coordination with national counterparts, the IAEA will transfer the linear accelerator to Black Lion Hospital in Ethiopia, where the cancer burden is projected to double to an estimated 176 000 new cases and 122 000 deaths in 2045.