HRH Princess Lalla Salma, who delivered a speech to the 65th session of the World Health Assembly, in her capacity as guest of honour, said that "given the seriousness of this scourge, we should make the fight against cancer an international priority at all levels," by focusing on sensitization and awareness, detection and early screening, access to treatment, and promoting training and scientific research.
HRH the princess insisted that "it is only through concrete action that we can achieve the above objectives and reduce the glaring disparities in the fight against the disease which exist between the North and the South and between the countries of the South themselves."
HRH Princess Lalla Salma drew attention to the "calamitous consequences" of cancer, "particularly in the countries of the South where, regrettably, the situation is getting worse," adding that "the number of cancer patients is bound to increase and lead to even more deaths unless we address this scourge through a comprehensive, cooperative plan."
"This plight, which is unacceptable both from the humanitarian and ethical standpoint, should be of great concern to us all: politicians, drug companies and civil society organizations. It makes it incumbent upon us to shoulder our responsibilities in this regard," HRH the princess said.
She insisted on the need to democratize cancer prevention methods and access to treatment, and called for developing and implementing plans for joint action, building on the efforts of all the actors concerned, particularly the World Health Organization which "will undoubtedly be keen to support such a collective aspiration and make the fight against this deadly scourge a global priority."
HRH the Princess recalled the "Marrakech Call", which was endorsed by the International Conference on Cancer Control in the Middle East and Africa, held in Marrakech last January, which stressed the need to adopt various partnership mechanisms and to strengthen South-South cooperation between governments and civil society organizations in the region. The Conference also called for mechanisms for the joint purchasing of cancer drugs to be established, and for a regional Middle-East and Africa fund for cancer prevention and treatment to be set up.
The Marrakech Call thus supported the proposal HRH the Princess made at the High-Level Meeting held in September 2011 to create an international cancer fund - similar to the HIV-AIDS fund - to confirm the international community's commitment to fighting cancer and thus "give concrete meaning to the collective responsibility we all feel is ours," she said.
In support of this proposal, which HRH the Princess reiterated, and consistent with the recommendation of the Marrakech Call, the World Health Organization could set up an "international cancer drugs observatory" to enable states to have access to information on cancer drug prices and quality, competent drug manufacturers and any other information that can be of benefit to patients and their families, or facilitate access to medication and treatment.
She expressed confidence in "the vast experience gained by the World Health Organization as the competent authority in charge of coordination and management of global health issues, its support for scientific research and the training of human resources, coupled with the financial resources that could be made available to the said fund" as factors to "bring about a quantum leap in tackling cancer."
