12 children with cancer or other blood disorders have been evacuated, with their companions, from Gaza Strip in the occupied Palestinian territory to Egypt and Jordan so as to continue their treatment safely.
This was disclosed on Friday by the World Health Organization which is in collaboration with the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital while additional children are expected to be evacuated for cancer treatment as part of this initiative.
WHO who welcomed the children evacuations, emphasized that sustained, orderly, unimpeded and safe medical evacuations of critically injured and sick patients into and via Egypt through the Rafah Border Crossing are essential.
The facilitation was coordinated by the officials of Egypt, Israel, Jordan, the occupied Palestinian territory, and the United States of America, as well as members of the St. Jude Global Alliance, a worldwide community of institutions and foundations dedicated to helping children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases.
In line with this, WHO and St. Jude are committed to facilitating the evacuation of more pediatric cancer patients, and their family members, as the health status of the patients and security conditions allow.
WHO Director-General, Dr Tedro Ghebreyesus said he is relieved that children in vital need of cancer care have been able to leave the insecurity and uncertainty in Gaza and continue receiving life-saving treatment in Egypt and Jordan.
He also noted the efforts, coordinated by St Jude and WHO, of all relevant authorities to put the health needs of these children first. “I pray this initiative can inspire all parties to put health and peace first.”
“This show of desperately needed humanitarian action should serve to motivate increased access to life-saving care to all people affected by this conflict, both inside Gaza where needs are greatest today, and beyond”, the DG added.
The current conflict has obstructed exit for patients from the Gaza Strip, while severely restricting the entry of essential medical supplies, including chemotherapy.
The two specialized hospitals offering care to cancer patients, including children, have been overwhelmed, undersupplied, exposed to attacks and, due to the insecurity, forced to close. Cancer care services are therefore severely limited, meaning it is critically urgent to transfer patients outside Gaza for treatment.
Also reacting to this is the St. Jude President and CEO, James R. Downing said, working together, WHO and St. Jude have built relationships with the global community of physicians treating children with cancer.
He added that these relationships made it possible to evacuate children from Ukraine early during that war. St. Jude has also supported pediatric cancer patients in the Eastern Mediterranean Region for more than two decades.
“As a result, St. Jude, working with WHO, is well positioned to facilitate the evacuation of pediatric cancer patients from Gaza”, St. Jude President said.
It was reported that in 2022, 122 children in the Gaza Strip were diagnosed with cancer, mainly leukemia.
But these children receive only a portion of their cancer care within Gaza due to lack of some cancer services, and, therefore, require referrals to hospitals in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Egypt, Israel and Jordan for further treatment.
