Barriers in access to oncology drugs — a global crisis

In the past decade, oncologists worldwide have seen unprecedented advances in drug development and approvals but have also become increasingly cognizant of the rising costs of and increasing inequities in access to these therapies. These trends have resulted in the current problematic situation in which dramatic disparities in outcomes exist among patients with cancer worldwide owing, in part, to the lack of access to drugs that provide clinically meaningful benefits. In this Viewpoint, we have asked six oncologists working in different countries to describe how they perceive this issue in their region and propose potential solutions.