Speaking at the opening of a conference on updates from the European Society for Medical Oncology on January 30, Le Tuan Anh, director of the Cho Ray Hospital Oncology Centre, said cancer remained one of the biggest health challenges for Vietnam, particularly in the south.
He said the development of a specialised centre capable of applying advanced techniques and providing integrated diagnosis, treatment and patient care was essential.
Over the past decade, under the professional guidance and support of Nguyen Truong Son, former Deputy Health Minister and former Director of Cho Ray Hospital, the centre has made notable progress in workforce quality as well as investment in facilities, equipment and technical infrastructure.
On treatment strategies, Le Tuan Anh said antibody drug conjugates, or ADCs, were increasingly becoming a major trend in cancer therapy. ADCs are targeted drugs made up of a monoclonal antibody, a linker and a cytotoxic payload, designed to overcome the limitations of traditional chemotherapy by delivering toxic agents more precisely to cancer cells.
Analysing data from the DESTINY series of clinical trials in breast cancer and other cancers, he said ADCs targeting the HER2 receptor on cancer cell surfaces remained central to expanding treatment indications. Future trends include developing ADCs with new targets and combining them with other therapies, such as immunotherapy.
Le Tuan Anh said the centre is currently carrying out more than 30 international clinical trials involving the latest cancer drugs that have not yet been licensed for commercial use, with hundreds of patients enrolled.
Eligible patients, particularly those with late stage cancer, can receive full support for the cost of advanced and often expensive treatments, offering renewed hope of survival.
The conference includes plenary and specialised sessions focusing on key areas such as breast, lung, urological and liver cancers, as well as gastrointestinal diseases, alongside updates on new detection and treatment methods.
Nguyen Truong Son said cancer was one of the heaviest burdens not only on the healthcare system but also on the national economy. In 2025 alone, Vietnam recorded hundreds of thousands of new cancer cases, while mortality rates remained high compared with many countries in the Asia Pacific region.
International scientific efforts, he said, are focused on three main pillars: early diagnosis, comprehensive treatment and palliative care, aimed at improving quality of life for patients.
In Vietnam, and at the Cho Ray Hospital Oncology Centre in particular, doctors are increasingly able to access and master advanced techniques ranging from imaging and molecular biology testing to modern treatments such as liquid biopsy for early detection of circulating cancer cells, as well as immunotherapy and cell based therapies.
Nguyen Truong Son said he hoped cancer centres across Vietnam would continue to absorb and effectively apply knowledge and experience from international conferences to better serve patients.
