MONICA KAYOMBO,Lusaka, Lusaka
ONE of recent reports by the Lancet Journal reveals that reductions in development assistance funding by previous donors including the US, United Kingdom, France and Germany have led to substantial challenges to global HIV control.
The same report reveals that that Cervical cancer remains the most common cancer attributed to HIV with almost half of these cervical cancer cases in Africa and Asia.
As the World commemorated the World Aids day on December 1, 2025, the UNAIDS released a report detailing the impact of the unpresented changing international aid landscape on global HIV control programmes worldwide with the low and medium income countries.
“Failure to meet the 2030 global HIV targets could result in an additional 3·3 million new HIV infections between 2025 and 2030, according to the report. Beyond the already devastating impact on the global burden of HIV, the disruptions seen in 2025 could have consequences beyond HIV and AIDS alone, an increase in the burden of non-communicable diseases, such as cancer, in the affected population.’’ the UNAIDS report reads in part.
The Lancet journal reports that Kaposi sarcoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and cervical cancer are common in people living with HIV due to immunosuppression.
It says additionally, other cancers such as anal, lung, liver, and oropharyngeal cancers, despite being non-AIDS-defining cancers, are more frequently observed in people living with HIV than in those without HIV.
According to the Worldwide incidence analysis, a wor7ldwide incidence analysis 81 300 (0·4 percent) of 19 million cancer cases diagnosed in 2022 were attributed to HIV, a proportion of which could, in theory, be prevented through improved HIV control.
The report says cervical cancer was found to be the most common cancer attributed to HIV, with almost half of these cervical cancer cases in Africa and Asia.
Kaposi sarcoma was the second most common HIV attributable cancer worldwide, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma was the most commonly diagnosed cancer in people living with HIV in North America and western and northern Europe.
The study authors concluded that the data could inform region-specific planning and assessment of HIV and cancer control measures.
However, these figures were estimated using data from 2022 before the current era of declining international aid,
“So the outlook for future populations of people living with HIV will likely be worse.
The number of people living with HIV will inevitably increase as HIV control programmes to prevent and treat HIV are scaled back or suspended globally, which could have several consequences for the global burden of cancer,’’ the study reveals.
The first is a proportional increase in HIV-attributable cancers and non-AIDS-defining cancers.
Although the proportion of people with HIV-attributable cancer in the incidence analysis might seem small (0·4 percent), this nonetheless accounts for more than 80 000 individuals diagnosed with cancer attributed to HIV, which is not negligible.
The stogy report argues that these are cancers that might have been prevented by effective HIV control measures.
Treatment delays due to disruptions to HIV programme funding could also have an indirect effect on cancer incidence in people living with HIV. In a cohort study of people with non-AIDS-defining cancers in the Netherlands, starting antiretroviral therapy within one year of HIV diagnosis was associated with a reduced risk of developing non-AIDS-defining cancer compared with starting treatment later.
Disrupted services leading to delays in starting antiretroviral therapy might therefore increase the numbers of people with HIV at risk of developing cancer.
Another unintended outcome is that cancer services historically integrated into HIV programmes, such as cervical cancer screening, might also be disrupted, leading to lower coverage of cancer screening and vital health services delivered to people living with HIV in the community setting.
Funding cuts are also adversely affecting crucial global research and clinical trials, which are vital in the pursuit of both HIV and cancer control worldwide.
The tumultuous events of 2025 have slowed progress towards meeting the target of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
Recognizing that there is still much work to be done, UNAIDS and World Health Organisation (WHO) both issued a call to action on World AIDS Day.
The themes in the two statements were very much inclined towards championing solidarity and collaboration, prioritising innovation, empowering communities, and upholding human rights to address health inequities.
