In the West and in developed countries, around 80% of childhood cancers can be cured. But 80% of the worlds children have no access to this treatment.

Many CCLG members are a part of our Paediatric Oncology in Developing Countries (PODC) group. Our aim is to increase the survival rate for all children with cancer and to give them the best available treatment.

The group supports individual trainees, junior doctor training and nurse training, as well as various projects in developing countries. Members of the group also have links with individual projects in various countries, including Pakistan, Malawi and Nepal.

The group has produced an information leaflet for parents and children in developing countries, focusing on prevention and treatment of side effects of chemotherapy. This has been translated into several local languages and distributed to hospitals in those countries. The leaflet is also available on the CCLG website. There are now plans to use the information in the leaflet to make a video to run in hospitals and educate parents and patients.

The first Foundation Oncology Skills Workshop for Paediatric Nurses took place in Chandigarh, India on the 15-16 February 2014.

Forty three delegates, including 4 junior doctors, attended the workshop. They came from hospitals in Chandigarh, neighbouring cities and states of India and 2 from Nepal. The workshop was a combination of lectures and hands-on skills. For the majority of the delegates this was the first formal educational opportunity specifically related to childhood cancer. They were delighted to receive their certificates which will now form an important part of their portfolio.

Read more on our website.

Together we can improve the survival rate for children with cancer and give them the chance to live a healthy life and thrive.