House proposes P3.75-B cancer assistance fund for 2027

The House of Representatives has allocated P3.75 billion for the Cancer Assistance Fund (CAF) in the proposed 2027 national budget to help patients access essential cancer services.

House Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan said the proposed allocation is 150% higher than the P1.5 billion allotted to the fund in 2026.

Libanan said the fund, which patients can access through Department of Health (DOH)-run hospitals and health facilities nationwide, aims to expand access to cancer screening, early detection, diagnosis, treatment and other essential medical services.

“The numbers tell us that cancer is not just a health issue. It also imposes a tremendous financial and social burden on Filipino families,” Libanan said, citing data showing that the disease claims nearly 200 lives daily.

“The CAF can help ease that burden and ensure that a cancer diagnosis does not automatically force a family to choose between life-saving treatment and putting food on the table,” he added.

Libanan said the proposed P3.75-billion allocation for the CAF is separate from the P1.31 billion earmarked for the Cancer Control Program in 2027.

In June, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that 70,668 Filipinos died from neoplasms, or cancers, in 2025, making the disease the country's second-leading cause of death after ischemic heart disease.

The figure translates to approximately 194 cancer-related deaths daily. Cancer accounted for 11.4% of all recorded deaths nationwide in 2025, according to the PSA.

The burden extends beyond mortality. The Philippine Cancer Society earlier reported that more than 150,000 new cancer cases are diagnosed in the country annually.

The government's priority cancer programs cover breast cancer; childhood cancers; gynecologic cancers; liver and other digestive tract cancers, including colorectal cancer; head and neck cancers, including thyroid cancer; lung cancer; and prostate, renal and urinary bladder cancers.