HANOI, VIETNAM – On Nov. 7, Project ECHO joined the global cancer community for the one-day Hanoi Cancer Control Conference. Hosted by the Hanoi Oncology Hospital, the gathering invited changemakers, international experts, medical leaders and researchers to share best-practice knowledge in cancer elimination. With global cancer rates expected to rise to 30.5 million by 2050, the conference supports collective efforts to strengthen cancer control around the world.
Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Health Đỗ Xuân Tuyên shared the opening address and underscored two strategic areas for improving oncology treatment: expanding access to care, especially in remote and under-resourced regions; and disseminating innovative oncology interventions to health care providers. Tuyên highlighted the ECHO Model as a transformational tool that has improved how health care providers deliver care and how institutions implement cancer control best practices across Southeast Asia.
To illustrate ECHO’s impact in the region, ECHO leaders and partners participated in a panel at the conference, inviting oncology leaders to learn more about supporting clinicians and building health care system capacity through virtual networks.
The ECHO Cancer Panel
Kicking off ECHO’s cancer panel, Melissa Lopez Varon, MPH, Ph.D., project director at MD Anderson Cancer Center’s ECHO Superhub, shared how her organization became a Superhub* in 2014 to address disparities in cancer care through training and mentorship.
ECHO’s virtual network “allowed partners to interact with us regularly,” Lopez Varon said, which transformed how health care providers and institutions accessed and applied best practices. Providers received immediate guidance on patient needs and treatment questions while institutions—including ministries of health—gained real-world knowledge for building systems-level interventions.
Participants in the ECHO Cancer Panel celebrate its success. From left to right: Dr. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Ha, Hanoi Oncology Hospital; Nguyen Phuong Lan, M.S., ECHO Vietnam; Elyse Barnes and Clayton Richards, ECHO Institute (NM); Melissa Lopez Varon, P.h.D., M.S., MD Anderson Cancer Center; Dr. Haridini Intan Setiawati Mahdi, Dharmais National Cancer Center; Dr. Le Hong Nhung, Vietnam’s National Children’s Hospital and ECHO Vietnam; and Tarun Kumar, ECHO India. Photo Credit: Adzkia Maghfiroh, ECHO Indonesia, Nov. 7, 2025.
Overcoming Geographic Barriers through ECHO
Similarly, the Regional Cancer Collaborative—an initiative for ECHO partners in Southeast Asia to connect and learn from each other—has created a “cross-pollination of ideas,” said Tarun Kumar, ECHO India’s deputy general manager. The RCC built information pathways across the region: health care providers, in the most remote areas, discuss their challenging cases with experts, peers and leaders; learn innovative best practices; and create context-specific solutions. Overcoming geographic barriers to care was a continued theme throughout the panel.
In Indonesia, ECHO Hubs** are driving the growth of cancer care programs throughout the geographically complex archipelago, said Dr. Haridini Intan Setiawati Mahdi, pediatric oncologist at the Dharmais National Cancer Center. Case-based learning supports the transfer of knowledge from regional hospitals to local health care providers, rapidly improving how cancer is detected and treated in remote island communities, Dr. Mahdi said, adding: large-scale institutions—including Dharmais and regional hospitals—enable local communities to develop people- and knowledge-powered solutions.
Dr. Le Hong Nhung, director of Vietnam’s National Children’s Hospital, vice-director of the center of pediatric health care directives and lead ECHO facilitator, concluded the ECHO Cancer Panel with examples of government-supported ECHO programs.
For more information on Project ECHO’s work to improve cancer care, email the program team.
* A Superhub is partner who has been approved by Project ECHO headquarters to certify new ECHO partners as well as train and support other ECHO partners. The centers receive special training to recruit, teach and support new ECHO partners through the implementation process.
** An ECHO Hub is an organization that facilitates ECHO programs.
The Expanding Access to Cancer Care in India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam initiative is made possible through the generosity of the Merck Foundation.