The Bihar government's State Health Society on Tuesday, 28 July signed a Memorandum of Understanding with a society of experts under the Change for Childhood Cancer initiative, making Bihar the 10th state in India to commit to building an integrated pathway for detecting, diagnosing, and treating childhood cancer. The agreement was formalised at Mahavir Cancer Sansthan (MCS), Patna, in a ceremony that also witnessed the collective pledge of 'The Bihar Promise'.

What the MoU Covers

The partnership will strengthen childhood cancer services across Bihar's four Childhood Cancer Care District Clusters (CCDCs) and all 38 districts of the state. It has been designed with the support of CanKids to create a coordinated pathway covering diagnosis, referral, treatment, shared care, and financial protection for every child diagnosed with cancer in Bihar.

The MoU was signed by Amit Kumar Pandey, IAS, Executive Director, State Health Society, Bihar, in the presence of Additional Executive Director Anupama and senior state officials.

The Bihar Promise

Poonam Bagai, Member of the ICMR Central Ethics Committee on Human Research, founder of CanKids, and Childhood Cancer International's WHO South East Asia Region Representative, described the day's defining moment as the collective affirmation of 'The Bihar Promise' — a pledge taken by government representatives, clinicians, cancer survivors, parents, and partner organisations.

The oath read: We pledge to work together so that no child with cancer in Bihar remains unfound, untreated or unprotected. Together, we will build a coordinated, child-centred system that ensures timely detection, diagnosis, referral, treatment, shared care and financial protection, giving every child the opportunity to survive and thrive.

Targets and Current Access Gap

Bagai stated that the partnership aims to achieve 100 per cent access to care, 100 per cent financial protection, and at least 60 per cent survival for children with cancer in Bihar by 2030. She noted that her team has been working with Bihar's four major childhood cancer treatment centres since 2008.

Presently, those centres — along with children referred for treatment outside the state — account for an estimated 53 per cent of access to childhood cancer care in Bihar. The new government-led coordinated network seeks to significantly close that gap.

Notably, CanKids had established its first Hospital Support Unit outside Delhi at Mahavir Cancer Sansthan in 2008–09, making the Patna institution a foundational site for this initiative.

Key Attendees and Institutional Backing

The event was presided over by Professor Biswajit Sanyal, Director of Mahavir Cancer Sansthan, and Medical Superintendent L. B. Singh. Other attendees included Amita Mahajan, Senior Paediatric Oncologist; Dr Haresh Gupta, Deputy CEO; childhood cancer survivor Chandan Kumar; and Shobha Singh, Director, Change for Childhood Cancer – Bihar.

As Bihar joins nine other states in this network, the focus now shifts to implementation — translating the pledge into measurable improvements in detection rates and survival outcomes across all 38 districts.