RESUMEN
As the burden of non-communicable diseases such as cancer continues to rise in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), it is essential to identify and invest in promising solutions for cancer control and treatment. Point-of-care technologies (POCTs) have played critical roles in curbing infectious disease epidemics in both high- and low-income settings, and their successes can serve as a model for transforming cancer care in LMICs, where access to traditional clinical resources is often limited. The versatility, cost-effectiveness, and simplicity of POCTs warrant attention for their potential to revolutionize cancer detection, diagnosis, and treatment. This paper reviews the landscape of affordable POCTs for cancer care in LMICs with a focus on imaging tools, in vitro diagnostics, and treatment technologies and aspires to encourage innovation and further investment in this space.
RESUMEN
Point-of-care (POC) technologies have proved valuable in cancer detection, diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment in the developed world, and have shown promise in low-and-middle-income countries (LMIC) as well. Despite this promise, the unique design constraints presented in low-resource settings, coupled with the variety of country-specific regulatory and institutional dynamics, have made it difficult for investigators to translate successful POC cancer interventions to the LMIC markets. In response to this need, the National Cancer Institute has partnered with the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering to create the National Institutes of Health Affordable Cancer Technologies (ACTs) program. This program seeks to simplify the pathway to market by funding multidisciplinary investigative teams to adapt and validate the existing technologies for cancer detection, diagnosis, and treatment in LMIC settings. The various projects under ACTs range from microfluidic cancer diagnostic tools to novel treatment devices, each geared for successful clinical adaptation to LMIC settings. Via progression through this program, each POC innovation will be uniquely leveraged for successful clinical translation to LMICs in a way not before seen in this arena.
RESUMEN
The concept of intraepithelial neoplasm (IEN) as a near-obligate precursor of cancers has generated opportunities to examine drug or device intervention strategies that may reverse or retard the sometimes lengthy process of carcinogenesis. Chemopreventive agents with high therapeutic indices, well-monitored for efficacy and safety, are greatly needed, as is development of less invasive or minimally disruptive visualization and assessment methods to safely screen nominally healthy but at-risk patients, often for extended periods of time and at repeated intervals. Imaging devices, alone or in combination with anticancer drugs, may also provide novel interventions to treat or prevent precancer.
