An agreement was signed on Saturday at the presential palace for the construction of a new Paediatric Oncology Centre in Nicosia, which is expected to significantly upgrade the services provided.

President Nikos Christodoulides welcomed the agreement signed between Health Minister Michalis Damianos, the president of the state health services organisation (Okypy) Marinos Kallis, and Maria Charalambidou, the president of the Cleanthous Foundation which is funding the €10 million project – noting that this was an “investment in life, hope and the future”.

The clinic is to be built on state land near the Makarios hospital. After completion, its management will be taken over by Okypy.

It is considered to be an extremely important infrastructure for the future of children with cancer and haematological diseases in Cyprus, since it is a project of international standards.

Christodoulides said that with the foundation’s contribution for the construction of this new unit, Cyprus could become a regional centre for the cure of childhood cancer, noting that Costas Cleanthous’ contribution – through the Cleanthous Foundation – was one not only to Cyprus but to “the entire region”.

Charalambidou said the foundation’s desire was to increase Cyprus’ participation in research on childhood cancer, which is why the appropriate spaces were included in the design of the building.

“We want to create a model Paediatric Oncology Centre,” she said, “where children will feel that they are in a friendly and supportive place, will be able to dream, learn, continue to develop and above all, be cured”.

Kallis said every year in Cyprus approximately 42 children aged between 0 and 19 are diagnosed with cancer.

He added there is “a 7.6 per cent annual increase in thyroid cancer in children between 15 and 19 years old, three or four times more frequent in girls”, noting, however, that “fortunately” statistics show 100 per cent cure rates.

For the rest of the childhood cancers, he said, no increase has been recorded, but that within the last 10 to 20 years the incidence of all cancers has been very high, but the reasons remain unclear.

In a post on X, Damianos said that the agreement, signed on Saturday’s International Childhood Cancer Day, paved the way for the construction of the centre in Nicosia.

He thanked Cleanthous noting that this “highly altruistic initiative” would upgrade efforts for the best possible treatment of childhood cancer in Cyprus.