Treatment of Hodgkin Lymphoma With ABVD Chemotherapy in Rural Rwanda: A Model for Cancer Care Delivery Implementation.

Purpose: Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is highly curable in high-income countries (HICs), yet many patients around the world do not have access to therapy. In 2012, cancer care was established at a rural district hospital in Rwanda through international collaboration, and a treatment protocol using doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (ABVD) without radiotherapy was implemented.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of all patients with confirmed HL seen at Butaro Hospital from 2012 to 2018 to evaluate quality indicators and clinical outcomes.

Standardization of Education of Patients With Cancer in a Low- and Middle-Income Country: A Quality Improvement Project Using the Booklet.

Purpose: The Butaro Cancer Centre of Excellence is the first comprehensive referral cancer center in Rwanda and at its inception did not have a standardized patient education program. Partners in Health/Inshuti Mu Buzima and the Rwandan Ministry of Health conducted a quality improvement project to increase patient knowledge by implementing a standardized oncology education program using picture-based and culturally appropriate materials designed for patients with cancer in low- and middle-income countries.

Methods: Four Rwandan nurses were trained to provide patient education using the education booklet created by Global Oncology.

Cost of Treating Pediatric Cancer at the Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence in Rwanda.

Purpose: Improvements in childhood survival rates have been achieved in low- and middle- income countries that have made a commitment to improve access to cancer care. Accurate data on the costs of delivering cancer treatment in these settings will allow ministries of health and donors to accurately assess and plan for expansions of access to care. This study assessed the financial cost of treating two common pediatric cancers, nephroblastoma and Hodgkin lymphoma, at the Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence in rural Rwanda.

Outcomes of Low-Intensity Treatment of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia at Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence in Rwanda.

Purpose: Children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in low-income countries have disproportionately lower cure rates than those in high-income countries. At Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence (BCCOE), physicians treated patients with ALL with the first arm of the Hunger Protocol, a graduated-intensity method tailored for resource-limited settings. This article provides the first published outcomes, to our knowledge, of patients with ALL treated with this protocol.

Voices of Hope From Rural Rwanda: Three Oncology Nurse Leaders Emerge.

The cancer burden in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) has been well described in the literature (International Agency for Research on Cancer, 2012; Ott, Ullrich, Mascarenhas, & Stevens, 2011; Thun, DeLancey, Center, Jemal, & Ward, 2010). According to the World Health Organization ([WHO], 2015), about 14 million new cancer cases occurred in 2012, and more than 60% of those cases were in Africa, Asia, and Central and South America; of the 8.2 million cancer-related deaths in 2012, more than 70% occurred in these regions (Bray & Møller, 2006).

Gestational Trophoblastic Neoplasia Treatment at the Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence in Rwanda.

Purpose: Gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN) is a highly treatable disease, most often affecting young women of childbearing age. This study reviewed patients managed for GTN at the Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence (BCCOE) in Rwanda to determine initial program outcomes.

Patients And Methods: A retrospective medical record review was performed for 35 patients with GTN assessed or treated between May 1, 2012, and November 30, 2014.

Pursuing equity in cancer care: implementation, challenges and preliminary findings of a public cancer referral center in rural Rwanda.

Background: Cancer services are inaccessible in many low-income countries, and few published examples describe oncology programs within the public sector. In 2011, the Rwanda Ministry of Health (RMOH) established Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence (BCCOE) to expand cancer services nationally. In hopes of informing cancer care delivery in similar settings, we describe program-level experience implementing BCCOE, patient characteristics, and challenges encountered.

Treating Nephroblastoma in Rwanda: Using International Society of Pediatric Oncology Guidelines in a Novel Oncologic Care Model.

Purpose: Success in treating nephroblastoma in high-income countries has been transferred to some resource-constrained settings; multicenter studies report disease-free survival of greater than 70%. However, few reports present care models with rural-based components, care tasks shifted to internists and pediatricians, and data collection structured for monitoring and evaluation. Here, we report clinical outcomes and protocol compliance for patients with nephroblastoma evaluated at Butaro Cancer Center of Excellence in Rwanda.