Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has urged to push up the construction of a VND1.4 trillion ($67.96M) tumor and cancer hospital funded by the Hungarian government, in the southern city of Can Tho. This is part of a financial cooperation framework agreement signed between the two countries in 2009, state media reported July 21. The PM has asked the project’s investor to work with the ministries of Planning and Investment; Health and other agencies to carry out the project in line with the current law. The oncology facility with 500 sickbeds is expected to meet the rising demand of not only local residents but also those in neighboring areas. Vietnam’s cancer burden is immense. With a population of nearly 87 million, it is experiencing 150,000 to 200,000 new cancer patients and up to 100,000 cancer-caused deaths per year, making it the second biggest killer after cardiovascular disease. (Suc Khoe & Doi Song July 21 p2, Phap Luat Viet Nam July 21 p2)
