International Atomic Energy Agency – Rays of Hope
The UN nuclear agency's programme to bring radiotherapy and nuclear medicine to the dozens of countries that have no or too few treatment machines.
The IAEA has supported radiotherapy and nuclear medicine in member states for decades through technical cooperation, dosimetry audits and the Human Health Programme, and in 2022 launched Rays of Hope to close the gap in countries where most cancer patients who need radiotherapy cannot get it. Rays of Hope funds equipment, training and quality assurance, working first in African countries with no linear accelerators, and creates Anchor Centres of expertise. The agency's Programme of Action for Cancer Therapy (PACT) runs imPACT reviews of national cancer control capacity with WHO and IARC, and its Dosimetry Laboratory underpins radiotherapy calibration worldwide. The IAEA also supports radiopharmaceutical production capacity for theranostics.
- Rays of Hope (radiotherapy access)
- imPACT reviews (with WHO and IARC)
- Dosimetry and quality audit services
- Radiopharmaceutical capacity building