P3B earmarked for cancer program, aid fund

MANILA, Philippines — Some P3 billion has been set aside in this year’s national budget for the government’s cancer control program and aid fund, according to Makati Rep. Luis Campos Jr., vice chair of the House of Representatives’ appropriations committee.

He pointed out that the increase in the budget for the Cancer Control Program (CCP) and the Cancer Assistance Fund (CAF) set aside in the 2025 General Appropriations Act showed the national government’s commitment to intensify its battle against the disease.

The CAF directly aids cancer patients, survivors, as well as persons at high risk, and covers the costs of cancer screening, early detection, diagnosis, treatment, and related care components, including the required diagnostics and laboratory services for patients.

The CCP supports cancer prevention and related interventions, including the procurement and delivery of medicines aimed at providing supportive therapy and palliative care to patients.

READ: DOH, WHO launch National Integrated Cancer Control Program

Cancer is currently the second leading cause of mortality among Filipinos, following ischemic heart disease, according to a report released last month by the Philippine Statistics Authority, where at least 96 Filipinos died from cancer-related causes every day, and 184 cancer cases were diagnosed per 100,000 patients.

The Department of Health has identified eight priority cancer types: breast cancer; childhood cancers; gynecologic cancers; liver cancer, including colorectal and other digestive tract cancers; head and neck cancers, including thyroid cancer; lung cancer; and cancers of the prostate, renal, and urinary bladder.

The top five cancers resulting in the highest number of deaths among Filipinos are lung cancer, and liver, breast, colon, and prostate cancers, according to the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology. —Jeannette I. Andrade