Peru

Although palliative care is often mistakenly associated only with end of life, it is just as important as ongoing treatment as chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, and surgery. Palliative care is a specialized kind of care that works with your regular, ongoing treatment to support and sustain a person physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Studies show those who include palliative care in ongoing cancer treatment not only enjoy better quality of life, but also may live longer.PATH’s Susan G Komen funded project tackled improving the quality of life of patients and their families facing breast cancer in Peru, by engaging local and international champions to create and validate a palliative care patient education curriculum for incorporation into a national program of patient navigation. The patient navigation approach of community and patient outreach developed by PATH has been taken up regionally and nationally in Peru, with validated curricula and training of navigators. PATH is now supporting the growth and expansion of patient navigation activities into the area of palliative care.This course has enhanced the Peruvian National Cancer Institute’s palliative care program and other hospitals with palliative care units, while providing additional content to train nurses for future patient navigation training and services for patients and their families.Several materials were produced, including a reference manual for use by nurse teachers and visual materials for interactive instruction with patients and families. The curriculum has been qualitatively evaluated with nurses, clinicians, patients, and family members during the implementation period.Women with breast cancer and their families will continue to benefit by having access to timely and accurate information on palliative care, as will other cancer patients. Nurse patient navigators will continue to benefit by having access to culturally relevant, clinically appropriate, and locally validated teaching materials.

Current live, oral rotavirus vaccines (LORVs) are reducing severe diarrhea in all settings, but they are not as effective in places with the highest burden. Alternative approaches in advanced clinical development include injectable next-generation rotavirus vaccines (iNGRVs), which have the potential to better protect children against disease, be combined with existing routine immunizations, and be even more affordable than the current LORVs. PATH conducted a series of studies to understand the real public health value of iNGRVs to help inform decisions by international agencies, funders, vaccine manufacturers, and countries. This included a feasibility and acceptability study with national stakeholders and healthcare providers in Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Peru, Senegal, and Sri Lanka to assess their preferences for different hypothetical rotavirus vaccine options. These briefs provide an overview of the results in each of the study countries.

Current live, oral rotavirus vaccines (LORVs) are reducing severe diarrhea in all settings, but they are not as effective in places with the highest burden. Alternative approaches in advanced clinical development include injectable next-generation rotavirus vaccines (iNGRVs), which have the potential to better protect children against disease, be combined with existing routine immunizations, and be even more affordable than the current LORVs. PATH conducted a series of studies to understand the real public health value of iNGRVs to help inform decisions by international agencies, funders, vaccine manufacturers, and countries. This included: targeted analyses on the ideal age group for iNGRVs and potential future combination vaccine options, impact and cost effectiveness analyses, a feasibility and acceptability study with national stakeholders and healthcare providers in six countries, and a demand forecast. This brief provides a comprehensive summary of the results.

New evidence shows single-dose HPV vaccination is highly effective

The Partnership for Vivax Elimination (PAVE) will support endemic countries in achieving their Plasmodium vivax (P. vivax) malaria elimination goals.PAVE will advance the development of quality-assured, child-friendly treatments for relapse prevention, and generate and consolidate evidence to support malaria-endemic countries in developing and implementing new strategies to eliminate P. vivax malaria.

Together with over 400 external stakeholders from across 50 countries, PATH has crafted a new institutional strategy that responds to the current crises we face as a global community, to the needs and priorities of our local partners, and to the resounding calls for the continued transformation of our sector. To bring our new strategy to life for our external partners, we’ve developed a strategy brochure. The brochure explains why PATH exists (our mission), what we will do (our priorities) and, perhaps most importantly, how we will do it (our change strategies).

PATH is a leader in adapting health innovations with and for women across systems, populations, and geographies. This brief outlines PATH's vision, approach, and areas of expertise in Sexual and Reproductive Health.

Experts and policymakers met to review research and plan for the pilot introduction of a new treatment protocol for P. vivax malaria in the Americas, against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic.

PATH has partnered with volunteers, midwives, and doctors in Peru to develop a holistic approach for breast cancer detection and treatment.

This brief summarizes the experience and capabilities of the PATH Cervical Cancer Team. For decades, PATH has been at the forefront of evidence-based strategies from HPV vaccine research and delivery to cervical cancer screening and treatment to ensure we best meet the needs and realities of these countries for the greatest health impact.