Approximately 130,000 cancer cases are diagnosed each year in Argentina, making it the fifth highest country in Latin America for cancer incidence. This data highlights the growing global burden of cancer and the importance of early detection and preventative measures. When considering the total population, the approximate incidence rate is 276 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, which is considered medium to high compared to other nations.
Experts emphasize that preventative lifestyle changes and early detection are significantly more impactful than treatment alone. Sergio Specterman, Vice President of the Argentine Association of Clinical Oncology, explains that adopting a few key behaviors can reduce cancer incidence by as much as 40%. “Medical interventions can’t have a greater impact, especially when considering healthcare costs. Campaigns to prevent smoking, promote healthy eating, and encourage exercise will be far more cost-effective in saving lives than paying for the most expensive drugs,” he stated.
Beyond Prevention
Despite the power of prevention, cancer cases continue to rise. Experts predict a potential 50% increase in incidence by 2030 if current trends continue. This underscores the need for increased awareness, consistent efforts to combat risk factors like smoking and sedentary lifestyles, and improved dietary habits. Yet, a shift in perception is also crucial: cancer is not necessarily a death sentence.
In addition to being preventable, cancer is also often curable, treatable, and, in some cases, manageable as a chronic condition. Data suggests that at least 50% of cancers can be cured. Advances in technology have significantly impacted oncology, offering patients more alternatives, particularly with early detection.
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“Cancer can be cured. Today, many cancers are curable. In the past, during the era of classical chemotherapy, there were already very chemosensitive tumors. With traditional chemotherapy, there is a high chance of cure. There are tumor models that are highly sensitive to treatments, such as lymphomas, several leukemias, and some sarcomas. Chemotherapy truly changed lives. The difference we are seeing now with all treatments are drugs against molecular targets. You can study the molecular biology of a tumor, detect what molecular failure it has, and in many cases, you have a specific drug to attack that mutation, making it more effective,” explained Specterman, who is also the Head of the Clinical Oncology Section at the Italian Hospital of Buenos Aires.
He also highlighted the impact of technological advancements. “The great discovery in oncology in recent years is immunotherapy – the ability to activate your white blood cells, your lymphocytes, to recognize and act against the tumor. And, in several tumor models, the results are very surprising. There are people who, in other situations, you wouldn’t have imagined being able to cure. It’s truly fascinating.”
Combating with Data
Given this outlook, what contributes to the continued stigma surrounding cancer as an irreversible disease? “I think it’s the initial impact. When a person with cancer comes to your office, they come overwhelmed and thinking it’s the end. They begin to rethink many things. Our mission is to be available, open their eyes, and guide them towards that destination, showing them all the doors that are still open,” Specterman added, reflecting on the physician’s role in patient care.
However, he noted a change in the level of information patients are bringing to appointments. “Sometimes it’s inaccurate and needs to be corrected, but they have much more access to information,” he said.
In fact, he asserted that information is the primary tool for combating this perception of cancer. “Many come to the office thinking it’s the end, having read the worst things on the internet. We combat this by stimulating information, helping them understand that there are new treatments, and while not all treatments are for everyone, progress is being made at a rapid pace.”
The Issue of Access and Public Health
This leads to a critical debate surrounding cancer as a curable disease: socioeconomic disparities in access to care.
“Equity and access to resources are the problem. As I’m talking about drugs that have a lot of activity, diagnostic methods, sequencing, molecular diagnostics, but all of that is expensive. Sometimes you have help from pharmaceutical companies interested in getting people on their drugs, but it’s also the doctor’s responsibility to be honest when prescribing. You have to base it on evidence, and if you believe a person will benefit greatly from a molecule, even if it’s expensive, you have to support that idea. But there are very expensive drugs, and you don’t always know the real benefit they provide. It’s debatable, and resources are finite,” he explained.
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In such cases, he assured that alternatives to reach agreements with pharmaceutical companies exist and depend on the willingness to negotiate and facilitate access. He cited examples of companies recognizing the cost of the drug if response rates are lower when tested in the real world, which can differ from previous testing results.
“There are resources. Financiers and healthcare providers reach agreements. Because they need to sell,” he noted. The question is whether the State should be responsible for assisting at these negotiation tables, to avoid detaching from the management of a key disease for public health. And in that case, if the administration of Javier Milei understands it that way, given the fear that cases will continue to grow.
“I believe there is a tendency for the private sector to manage its resources. I don’t see the State very active in global institutions making purchases through the State, for example. I don’t see it,” he warned. However, he assured that the private sector has an incentive in cancer treatment. “It’s profitable because there are many institutions dedicated to cancer treatment and they are still standing. Treating cancer mobilizes many things,” he indicated.
A matter that generates optimism considering the advances of recent years in treatment. A disease that must be combated first through prevention and then through the constant advancement of treatment methods and the State’s responsibility to consider it one of the most important in terms of public health.
As long as the patient is certain that they should never lose hope and much less suffer the stigma.
Data: Global Cancer Observatory and Infomedia.
