Pressure over the past 5 years
Discovering a tumor at the age of over 60, Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Hoang (from Vinh Long) experienced emotions ranging from surprise to disappointment, even helplessness. However, she always maintains an optimistic spirit and persists in treatment to prolong her health.
However, after being admitted to the radiotherapy Department (Can Tho City Oncology Hospital), Ms. Hoang continued to face difficulties in waiting more than 2 months for radiotherapy.
"Not only me but many women in the pain of arthritis are also waiting for radiotherapy. The machinery at the hospital is not enough to meet the needs while our circumstances are also difficult to travel, we have to endure" - Ms. Hoang shared.
Explaining this situation, Doctor CKII. Tran Thanh Phong - Head of the radiotherapy Department, Can Tho City Oncology Hospital said that up to now, the Department has only been equipped with an outdated Cobalt 60 radiotherapy machine, which must operate 24/7 to serve patients.
"There are patients who have to wait 3 - 4 months to receive radiotherapy and this situation has lasted for about 5 years at the Department, causing great pressure on the medical staff and directly affecting the treatment of patients" - Dr. Phong informed.
Previously, on October 19, during a working trip to Can Tho City, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh requested that the Can Tho City Oncology Hospital Construction Investment Project with a scale of 500 beds must continue and be completed in 2026. The Prime Minister requested Can Tho as the project owner to propose capital to immediately buy 2 radiotherapy machines to treat people's diseases because this is an emergency, related to the health and lives of the people.
On October 21, 2025, the People's Committee of Can Tho City issued Official Letter No. 1921/UBND-XDDT to the Prime Minister proposing to support central budget capital to urgently purchase 02 linear accelerators (LINACS) to serve cancer treatment at Can Tho City Oncology Hospital.
Accordingly, the City People's Committee submitted to the Prime Minister for consideration and approval of support of 260 billion VND from the central budget to purchase 02 LINACS machines for cancer treatment, contributing to improving the quality of medical examination and treatment, reducing the burden on the health system and ensuring health care benefits for people.
Calculating demand
The hospital's radiotherapy department currently has a scale of 85 beds. Statistics show that the number of radiotherapy patients here has increased sharply over the years: in 2021 it was 16,371, in 2022 it was 26,182, in 2023 it was 20,822.
According to Dr. Phong, after the merger, Can Tho City has about 4.2 million people, so it needs to be equivalent to about 5 accelerator radiotherapists (according to the 1.1 million people standard, 1 radiotherapist will be equipped).
"We are very excited that the Prime Minister is interested and proposed to buy radiotherapy machines for us. With these 2 new accelerator radiotherapists, expected to be installed at the new facility (Phong Dien), there will be 1 more machine invested by Can Tho City to replace the old Cobalt 60. If the 500-bed hospital project is launched, we will be able to invest in 4 more radiotherapy machines. Thus, in the future, we will have 7 radiotherapy machines" - Doctor Phong calculated.
In the Mekong Delta alone, Dr. Phong added that with about 18 million people, in the context of cancer increasing, to meet the need for radiotherapy, the area needs to be equipped with about 20 radiotherapists.
Talking to Lao Dong, Dr. Vo Van Kha, Director of Can Tho City Oncology Hospital, said: "For the hospital, we urgently complete procedures, ready for all work to coordinate with relevant units to carry out the steps. At the same time, the Board of Directors and the medical team also accompany and encourage patients, we really hope that the machines will be put into operation as soon as possible".
