#Institutul Oncologic

105 km to radiotherapy: a law on modern anti-cancer technologies passed its first reading, but for Ungheni the distance stays the same

On 26 June, Parliament voted in the first reading on a bill that, for the first time, defines the «particle accelerator» in law and extends its use beyond radiotherapy — towards the production of radiopharmaceuticals and research. It is a framework for authorisation and safety, not money for machines. Beyond the text, the stake for a person from Ungheni is a harsh geography: all radiotherapy in Moldova is carried out in a single place, at the Oncological Institute in Chișinău, some 105 km from Ungheni. The Ungheni District Hospital only detects and refers, and the recent wave of chemotherapy «closer to home» bypassed the district. Twenty kilometres across the Prut, Iași has radiotherapy — and free accommodation for patients.