ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider High cost of drugs poses a 'major barrier' for cancer patients in PH

High cost of drugs poses a 'major barrier' for cancer patients in PH

On World Cancer Day, advocates push for an expanded list of cancer medicines exempted from VAT

Published Feb 4, 2024 07:11 am

Financial constraints brought by expensive medication, experts said, are among the primary reasons why Filipino cancer patients continue to struggle to complete their treatment.

towfiqu-barbhuiya-_04ev82q-s0-unsplash.jpg
Photo from Unsplash 

Recognizing the urgent need to help Filipino cancer patients overcome treatment hurdles brought on by the high cost of drugs, the Philippine College of Surgeons Cancer Commission Foundation (PCS CanCom) is calling to expand the list of cancer medicines exempted from value-added tax (VAT).

“We are grateful for the addition of these two innovator drugs for advanced colorectal and breast cancer to the list of VAT exempt cancer medicines which is very timely considering that February 4 is World Cancer Awareness Day,” said PCS CanCom Chairman Manuel Francisco Roxas.

PCS CanCom is a multistakeholder, multisectoral, and multidisciplinary organization committed to elevating the standards of cancer care throughout the Philippines.

It aims to be the forefront national leader in advancing value-based, high-quality cancer surgery services and pioneering research.

The Foundation also catalyzes collaboration, fostering meaningful partnerships between public and private sectors, and advocates for the holistic improvement of the economic, social, and physical well-being of Filipinos facing the challenges of cancer, including survivors and their families.

The organization welcomed the announcement of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) exempting 21 medicines from VAT.

READ:

https://mb.com.ph/2024/1/31/21-medicines-granted-vat-exemption-by-bir

However, PCS CanCom recommended including other cancer treatment drugs in the list to make cancer care affordable to patients in the Philippines.

“We recommend to further expand this list because studies show that the high cost of cancer drugs is a major barrier in completing treatment amongst Filipino patients,” Roxas said.

Making cancer medicines more affordable, Roxas said, can also “contribute to the advancement” of cancer care in the country.

“Together with a vigorous cancer prevention, screening and early detection program, making cancer medicines more affordable will contribute to increased survivorship and better health outcomes nationwide,” he added.

PNCS 2024: Cancer awareness, stronger collaboration

To strengthen cancer awareness and push for stronger collaboration, PCS CanCom together with the Department of Health (DOH), Cancer Coalition Philippines (CCPh), and the Philippine Cancer Society will hold the Philippine National Cancer Summit (PNCS 2024) from Feb. 29 to March 1 at Novotel Araneta City.

With the theme, “Advancing Integrated Cancer Care Systems for the Filipino,” Roxas said the PNCS 2024 aims to unite a diverse range of stakeholders from the national and international cancer community to address this critical issue, focusing specifically on the crucial elements of early screening and timely surgical intervention.

“We want to identify and disseminate best practices, models, and innovation in integrated cancer care,” Roxas said.

“We also want to foster collaboration among all stakeholders engaged in cancer care, including the government, healthcare professionals, patients, families, and the private sector,” he added.

As listed in the DOH calendar of activities, February is Philippine Cancer Awareness Month. 

RELATED STORY: 

https://mb.com.ph/2024/1/31/doh-chief-welcomes-vat-removal-on-21-medicines
 

Related Tags

cancer Philippines cancer medication World Cancer Day World Cancer Day 2024 DOH
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.