Cancer Without Treatment in Gaza: Patients Caught Between War and Lost Chances of Survival

Gaza /PNN/

Cancer patients in the Gaza Strip are facing mounting hardship as treatment interruptions, drug shortages and limited access to medical referrals accelerate the deterioration of their health, doctors and families say. The case of Basel, a patient whose condition has worsened since the war began, underscores the risks posed by delayed care.

Khalil Sami Ibrahim Abu al-Anin, Basel’s brother, said the disease was first diagnosed in Gaza in 2022. Basel began treatment at the Turkish Friendship Hospital, where he received care for more than a year.

During that initial period, his condition was stable, Abu al-Anin said. Basel was able to carry on with daily life and work, while receiving chemotherapy regularly. He showed few severe symptoms, and his overall physical condition remained relatively steady.

Radiation therapy was a key part of his treatment plan. Coordination was arranged through the Turkish Friendship Hospital to refer him to Augusta Victoria Hospital in Jerusalem. Basel managed to attend several sessions there, but the outbreak of war prevented him from completing the course and cut off access to the care he needed.

Since treatment stopped, Basel’s health has steadily declined, his brother said, with the situation worsening amid ongoing displacement. The family has been forced to live in a tent under harsh environmental and health conditions. Dust, debris and pollution have aggravated his condition, particularly his breathing.

Abu al-Anin said Basel now experiences periods of low oxygen levels and at times requires an oxygen cylinder, which the family struggles to secure consistently. They manage to obtain oxygen intermittently when possible, but shortages and conditions on the ground make this difficult.

The medications currently available to Basel are largely limited to painkillers and small doses of treatment, his brother added. These are not part of the primary therapy he was meant to receive, but are used mainly to ease pain and symptoms.

Although he has been given strong painkillers, Basel’s body has gradually become less responsive to them, increasing his daily suffering as he remains unable to access specialized care or resume the treatment plan he began before the war.

Dr. Saleh al-Eid, an oncologist and hematology specialist, said that before the war began in October 2023, cancer patients in Gaza received part of their treatment locally, while more advanced cases were referred to hospitals in the West Bank, where key therapies—including immunotherapy and targeted treatments—were available.

The war brought those referrals and treatments to a near halt, he said, leaving cancer patients for nearly a year without chemotherapy, immunotherapy or targeted therapies.

While some medications have entered Gaza since then, the situation remains far from resolved. Available treatments are limited and often do not match the protocols patients had been following in West Bank hospitals. Supplies have largely been restricted to certain chemotherapy drugs, while immunotherapy and targeted treatments remain scarce or unavailable.

Chemotherapy alone is not sufficient for all cancer patients, al-Eid said, particularly for some lung cancer cases that require immunotherapy or targeted therapies based on tumor type and genetic analysis.

He added that the crisis extends beyond drug shortages to include the difficulty of patients leaving Gaza for treatment. Referral and travel procedures can take long periods, despite the need for timely and regular care. Delays, he warned, can lead to worsening conditions and reduced chances of recovery.

Around 11,000 cancer patients are currently in Gaza, according to al-Eid, with thousands of medical referrals awaiting approval for travel. About 4,000 of those cases involve patients who need to leave the territory for treatment.

He warned that continued delays in treatment and referrals pose a real threat to patients’ lives, noting that some cases may reach critical stages where waiting is no longer possible, and that patients could die due to lack of timely care.

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