Funding shortfall disrupts free cancer treatment programme in KP

PESHAWAR: A shortage of funds has disrupted the free treatment programme for cancer patients at three major medical teaching institutions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with more than 1,000 registered poor patients waiting for medicines at Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC), Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH) in Peshawar, and Ayub Teaching Hospital (ATH) in Abbottabad.

Health Secretary Shahidullah Khan said he was in contact with the planning and development department for re-appropriation of funds so that treatment for cancer patients could resume.

According to official sources, the government was supposed to release Rs1,500 million for the free treatment programme for 2025-26. Of that amount, Rs820 million has been released so far, while the remaining Rs680 million has yet to be provided.

Patients awaiting medicines

The funding gap has affected medicine supplies at the three hospitals covered under the scheme. At ATH, 347 patients have received free medicines from August 2025 until now, but the hospital last received medicines in December 2025 and its stock is now close to running out.

Sources said, “Some of the basic drugs in the hospital have completely exhausted and authorities concerned are sending requests for provision of medicines, but to no avail.”

At KTH, 623 registered patients are waiting for medicines as no stock is currently available there either.

KTH director Dr Sajjadullah Dawar said the hospital administration was working to begin providing free medicines to patients under the Sehat Card Plus scheme. He said, “We have got oncology services and cancer patients will soon start getting free drugs.”

At HMC, director Dr Gulzar Ahmed Khan also confirmed that a lack of funds had interrupted medicine supply. He said, “We are awaiting funds and have sent request to health department. As soon as funds are made available, free medication will resume.” He also expressed hope that the government would release the required amount soon.

Programme history and expansion

The free treatment initiative for blood cancer patients began in 2013 under the leadership of Prof Abid Jamil, then head of the oncology department at HMC, through a public-private partnership with a pharmaceutical company to help poor patients access treatment.

Initially limited to blood cancer cases, the programme was expanded three years later to include all types of cancer. It later suffered a setback after Prof Abid’s retirement. The initiative was subsequently revived and extended to KTH and ATH after he became health adviser in the interim government, allowing patients to receive medicines closer to home instead of travelling to HMC in Peshawar.

Under the arrangement, the government allocates funds to HMC, which then transfers 25 per cent each to KTH and ATH.

Impact and outcomes

Oncologists associated with the initiative said more than 10,000 patients had benefited from the programme since it began. They said blood cancer patients were treated with an 85 per cent cure rate, while the rate for all cancers was around 70 per cent, which they said matched international standards.

They said the extension of the programme to ATH had helped patients from Abbottabad, Mansehra and Haripur in Hazara division, as well as people from Kohistan and Gilgit-Baltistan. Previously, patients had to travel to HMC every month for follow-up treatment and medicines, which was especially difficult for those living in distant areas.

The oncologists said cancer treatment was expensive and prolonged, requiring regular medication. They added that the programme covered all patients, including those in the last stage of cancer, where treatment was started to prolong life by one to two years. They warned that the suspension of free medicines could lead to deaths among patients because the drugs were very costly.