21 Ukrainian children with cancer have been brought to England to receive care through the NHS, the government has reported. The UK partnered with St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, a non-profit US organisation that specialises in paediatric diseases, to arrange an urgent flight for the children.
The vital and in many cases lifesaving cancer treatment will be provided free of charge by the health service across hospitals in England.
- The UK government has brought 21 Ukrainian children with cancer to receive care through the NHS in England
- The children will undergo an assessment to understand their specific health needs before getting treatment at an appropriate NHS hospital
- Intervention is part of the government’s wider humanitarian response to the Ukraine conflict with more than 650,000 medical items already delivered to Ukraine
The children are being brought over by the UK government with the support of Polish authorities and clinicians.
The 21 children and their immediate family members landed in England on Sunday evening from Poland and will be triaged by NHS clinicians to understand their health needs before being sent to NHS hospitals in England to continue their care.
Hospitals in Poland have taken in many children needing healthcare who have arrived from Ukraine. With more children crossing the border requiring immediate treatment, the UK has responded to Poland’s call for support from international partners to provide additional care.
The Department of Health and Social Care has collaborated with the Department for Transport, Home Office, and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to facilitate the transfer of the children from Poland to the UK.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:
The sickening suffering of innocent civilians in Ukraine is truly horrific. This vital lifesaving medical care is another important step in our support for the people of Ukraine and their resistance against Putin’s illegal invasion.
I am hugely grateful to our fantastic NHS staff as well as our partners, including our Polish friends, for their support in bringing these children to the UK and we will continue to do all we can to support them as they continue their critical treatment here.
St. Jude Global works with about 160 hospitals in 60 countries to help facilitate the treatment of childhood cancer, according to director Dr. Carlos Rodriguez-Galindo. The hospital has a programme specific to countries that emerged from the former Soviet Union, including Ukraine. In the country, St. Jude partners with hospitals, universities and the ministry of health.
“Just a few hours after the Russian army started the aggression within the Ukrainian territory, basically we just jumped immediately to help coordinate efforts with our partners,” said Rodriguez-Galindo.
To read more about what St. Jude is doing to evacuate Ukrainian children to receive cancer treatment outside of their home country as the country is at war, read here.