ArticleEcancermedicalscience2019
Radiotherapy treatment in cancer control and its important role in Africa.
Article in Ecancermedicalscience, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 33 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
33 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 47 citations in OpenAlex.
- Barriers to Radiotherapy Access in Sub-Saharan Africa for Patients with Cancer: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Pooled it
- Development of the 'REadiness SElf-assessment (RESEA) guide' to assist low and middle-income countries with establishing safe and sustainable radiotherapy services: a pragmatic sequential mixed qualitative methods project.BMC health services research · 2021Pooled it
- Segmentation for pelvic malignancies in radiation oncology practice: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol.Systematic reviews · 2026Article
- Quantifying cervical cancer radiotherapy care gap: Baseline assessment prior to implementation of a digital Health App.Technical innovations & patient support in radiation oncology · 2026Article
- Signal-aware deep learning-based respiratory motion prediction for lung tumor management.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Article
- Unlocking radiotherapy access: the critical role of structural quality and radiation therapists in Saudi Arabia.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Article
- A mixed methods protocol for a framework to improve access to radiotherapy services for cancer patients in Gauteng Province, South Africa.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Improving Access to Radiotherapy: Exploring Structural Quality Indicators for Radiotherapy in Gauteng Province, South Africa.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Improving Access to Radiotherapy Services in Gauteng: Quantitative Analysis of Key Time Intervals from Diagnosis to Treatment.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- A qualitative study of patient experiences: socioeconomic barriers to radiotherapy access in Gauteng, South Africa.Ecancermedicalscience · 2025Article
- Soft Tissue Sarcoma in Sub-Saharan Africa: Surgical Management Outcomes, Gaps, and Future Prospects: A Narrative Review.Health science reports · 2024Article
- Radiation Therapy for Breast Cancer in Africa.Advances in radiation oncology · 2024Review
- Holistic Person-Centered Care in Radiotherapy: Protocol for a Scoping Review.JMIR research protocols · 2024Article
- The Landscape of Pediatric Radiation Oncology in Nigeria.JCO global oncology · 2024Review
- Childhood Hodgkin Lymphoma in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review on the Effectiveness of the Use of Chemotherapy Alone.Global pediatric health · 2024Review
- Status of Government-Funded Radiotherapy Services in Nigeria.JCO global oncology · 2023Article
- Advancing oncology drug therapies for sub-Saharan Africa.PLOS global public health · 2023Review
- Cost analysis of three-dimensional radiation therapy versus intensity-modulated chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced cervical cancer in Peruvian citizens.Ecancermedicalscience · 2023Article
- Quality of life among cancer patients at Queen Elizabeth and Kamuzu Central Hospitals in Malawi: a cross-sectional double-center study.African health sciences · 2022Article
- Modern Radiotherapy Technology: Obstacles and Opportunities to Access in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.JCO global oncology · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Radiotherapy, although an essential and cost-effective treatment for cancer, has a low uptake on the African continent. Common cancers treated in the region need radiotherapy as a component of therapy at some point in the course of the management of their disease. Within Africa, around half of the countries have no radiotherapy services and most of those that have cannot adequately cover the population which needs them. To redress inequitable access, advocacy at all levels is needed for acceptance of radiotherapy and the important role it plays in cancer control. The relatively high cost of setting up radiotherapy services needs to be balanced with the long-term benefits of having a well-proven treatment modality that can be accessible to a large number of cancer patients at reasonable cost. Low healthcare funding in the region is a possible hindrance to access to radiotherapy. Consideration of the appropriateness of technology to be procured when setting up such facilities is important. It should not, however, be simply a case of gamma versus photon teletherapy. The level of training of staff, quality evidence-based treatment provision and infrastructural considerations need to be taken into account. Where facilities are available, low radiotherapy utilisation rates are common and should be corrected. Good practice regarding quality assurance is important. Local research to test regional and adopted practices should be promoted to provide local evidence.
conclusionsWith an imminent cancer epidemic, the scarcity of radiotherapy facilities in Africa is a cause for concern. The measures to correct this should include a multipronged approach that addresses specific needs for individual countries. Radiotherapy is an essential, cost-effective treatment for cancer and its availability must be given priority alongside the management interventions for other common diseases and conditions.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.