United States Contributes over $1.2 Million to IAEA Peaceful Uses Initiative to Support Cancer Treatment in Paraguay
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The U.S. Department of State’s Office of Multilateral Nuclear and Security Affairs and the U.S. Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration’s Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation are jointly contributing more than $1.2 million in funding to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to support cancer treatment in Paraguay.
The U.S. funding will support the purchase of a second medical linear accelerator in Paraguay. Medical linear accelerators, or LINACs, are used by radiation oncologists for curative or palliative cancer treatment in over half of cancer patients. LINACs use electricity, rather than a radioactive source, to generate high energy beams of X-rays or electrons that can precisely destroy cancer cells with minimal damage to the surrounding healthy tissue. Doctors in Paraguay will be able to use this device to treat a broad range of cancers, including common women’s cancers like cervical and breast cancer.
This $1.2 million contribution is part of a much larger effort by the United States to improve the lives of people in countries around the world by funding projects through the IAEA that further the peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology.
The IAEA’s Technical Cooperation Program helps Paraguay strengthen its infrastructure to diagnose and treat patients with cancer by increasing national capabilities for radio diagnostics, nuclear medicine, and radiotherapy. These efforts improve the effectiveness of treatments and the quality of life for people with cancer.
For more information on the IAEA’s technical cooperation projects, visit: https://www.iaea.org/services/technical-cooperation-programme
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