HÀ NỘI — The National K (Cancer) Hospital and France’s Marie Institute will work together on cancer prevention, treatment and research under an agreement signed on Saturday in Hà Nội.

The agreement was witnessed by Vietnamese Health Minister Nguyễn Thị Kim Tiến and French Minister of Solidarity and Health Agnes Buzyn on the occasion of her official visit to Việt Nam.

“Cancer control and prevention currently remains a big challenge to modern medicine in the world, requiring not only the latest professional knowledge and techniques but also efforts from patients, their families and support from the whole of society and the community,” said Tiến.

 “I believe that co-operation between the National K Hospital and Marie Institute would contribute greatly to cancer control and prevention in Việt Nam,” added Tiến.

National K Hospital director Trần Văn Thuấn said that the two sides would work together on training human resources and sharing professional experience, while establishing joint programmes on research, training and patient care.

The two sides would also organize an annual conference and other symposiums to exchange information in the fields of hospital management, research and training.

Thuấn added that as result of the new agreement, the second Việt Nam and French Cancer Conference with a focus on lung cancer would take place in Hà Nội on November 7.

The burden of cancer is increasing in Việt Nam and around the world. Việt Nam currently has around 300,000 people living with cancer. In 2018, Việt Nam reported around 165,000 new cancer cases and nearly 115,000 people die from cancer yearly. Most cancer patients were diagnosed in the later stages, making treatment more difficult and expensive. — VNS