Indonesia's Government-owned key cancer care facility and major cancer referral institute, the Dharmais National Cancer Center in West Jakarta, has initiated a collaboration with the University of Indonesia (Depok City, West Java, Indonesia), the University of New Mexico (Albuquerque, NM, USA), and the Tata Memorial Centre (Mumbai, India) as part of government-led efforts to improve the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The collaboration is participating in three new programmes: Project Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (ECHO), Cancer Patient Navigation (NAPAK), and a capacity-building initiative for oncology nurses.

On Nov 3, 2023, remote and rural parts of western Nepal were hit by a powerful earthquake, measuring 6·4 on the Richter scale, leading to the deaths of more than 150 people and injury of over 338 people as of Nov 7.

On Dec 7, 2023, in a meeting of the House Health Committee in Cyprus, members of Parliament applauded the Cypriot Government's decision to allocate €1·2 million towards the establishment of a National Cancer Institute in the country. This came after much public discourse and disagreements following the Government's earlier decision to exclude the allocation from its 2024 state budget.

Shortages of cancer drugs have been reported in Latin American countries. One of the affected countries is Argentina, where a substantial increase in inflation was also recorded. Consumer prices increased by 88% from 2021 to October, 2022. As a result, prices of cancer drugs have increased by more than 54%, and the overall cost of cancer drugs increased by 62% in the first 9 months in 2022, which affects patients with cancer in Argentina.

On June 29, 2023, the US Supreme Court ruled that race can no longer be regarded as a factor in admissions to US universities. The American Cancer Society (Atlanta, GA, USA) and the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO; Alexandria, VA, USA) expressed their concerns over this ruling with regard to diversity in the oncology workforce in the USA.

With the devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria causing substantial disruption in health-care services, including cancer care, the global cancer community—including the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO), expressed support for oncology services in these countries.

To decrease the mortality, morbidity, and social and economic effects associated with cancer, Botswana needs to boost cancer prevention and strengthen its health infrastructure to tackle malignant diseases, according to the country's Minister of Health and Wellness Edwin Dikoloti. On Feb 19, 2022, during his address at the inauguration of a cervical cancer screening campaign in Kopong (a village in Botswana's Kweneng district), Dikoloti said that the cancer and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a challenge for the country. In terms of controlling cervical cancer—the most frequently reported cancer in Botswana—prevention, early diagnosis, use of primary care services, multi-sectoral participation, and high-quality treatment are key approaches.

Records from Mumbai's Tata Memorial Hospital show marked disparities between girls and boys receiving treatment for cancer at the hospital, with only one girl for every two boys receiving care over the past 10 years.

On June 8, 2022, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the country's health protection agency, announced awards of US$215 million as first-year funding under a US$1·1 billion investment it plans to make over 5 years, with three national cancer prevention and control programmes.

In Mozambique, a country of more than 31 million people in sub-Saharan Africa, cancer is estimated to cause more than 17 000 deaths annually, with the disease also leading to almost half of the premature deaths (ie, before the age of 70 years) for non-communicable diseases in the country, according to WHO.

Since September, 2021, Augusta Victoria Hospital—the leading cancer treatment centre in east Jerusalem in the Occupied Palestinian Territory—has been refusing new patients with cancer and, as a result, as of the end of March, 2022, nearly 500 patients with cancer were denied treatment at the hospital according to a recent BBC report.

Uruguay has taken up a major initiative to address the high incidence of, and mortality from, cancer in the country. In Uruguay, a country with a population of 3·5 million people, based on data from 2013 to 2017, on average, 17 000 new cancer cases are detected every year and 8000 deaths due to cancers are reported annually. Almost 25% of all deaths in Uruguay are attributable to cancer, making it the second most frequent cause of death in the country after cardiovascular diseases. It is estimated that a third of people in Uruguay will develop cancer during their lifetime. The most common types of cancer in the country include breast, prostate, colorectal, and lung cancer.

Zimbabwe is facing a critical situation with respect to cancer care as a consequence of the country's inadequate health-care delivery system, with the chances of survival of patients with cancer being very low in the country owing to the failure of the health sector. Justice Mudavanhu (Ministry of Health and Child Care, Harare, Zimbabwe) has expressed concerns regarding the management of cancer care in Zimbabwe.

On Nov 17, 2020, WHO launched a global initiative to accelerate the elimination of cervical cancer, and set up an historical milestone—through adoption of a resolution by 194 countries at the World Health Assembly—that pledged, for the first time, to eliminate a malignant disease by pursuing three important steps: vaccination, screening, and treatment.

With the Taliban taking control of Afghanistan, international organisations are pointing out problems in the health-care situation in the country. According to the UN, WHO's mobile health teams have had to halt operations due to lack of security in Kabul, and there are inadequate levels of essential medical supplies and equipment. Cancer care in Afghanistan might be at risk after the Taliban has taken over the country.

The provision of cancer care in Nigeria is entering a crucial phase as thousands of resident doctors in the country remain on strike owing to unpaid salaries, inadequate facilities, and other reasons, according to media reports.

According to new research, a high proportion of patients with locally advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma, neoadjuvant treatment with FOLFIRINOX and anti-hypertensive drug losartan followed by chemoradiotherapy were able to achieve margin-negative (R0) resection.

According to new research, in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, including those refractory to lenalidomide, combined treatment with daratumumab plus carfilzomib and dexamethasone shows an acceptable safety profile and encouraging preliminary anticancer activity.

New research suggests that patients undergoing complex cancer surgery at leading cancer hospitals in the USA have a lower risk of mortality within 90 days than patients having complex cancer surgery at affiliated hospitals that share the leading hospitals' brand.

A high proportion of children, adolescents, and young adults who died at hospitals in France as a consequence of cancer received high-intensity end-of-life (HI-EOL) care, according to a recent study.