McCabe Centre celebrates 10 years of advancing law to fight cancer

The McCabe Centre was founded on World Cancer Day, 4 February 2012, as a joint initiative of Cancer Council Victoria, the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) and Cancer Council Australia.

Ten years on, it has become a trusted source of knowledge, training and technical support on legal measures to reduce the impact of cancer and other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). The impact report published on 4 February chronicles the work and achievements of the centre in the past decade.

“We can be very grateful for the impact of the McCabe Centre on the lives of people affected by cancer in Victoria, Australia and around the world. It has supported new laws that keep people healthier and empowered legal reforms that help everyone get access to the treatment and care they need."
– Todd Harper, CEO of Cancer Council Victoria.

Engaging with law and policy for cancer prevention and control

The McCabe Centre for Law & Cancer is delivering a Master course for UICC members from 4 April to 31 August 2022 via UICC's elearning platform. The course will look at the relevance of international law in cancer prevention as well as using the law effectively to advance Universal Health Coverage in a time of COVID-19.

The McCabe Centre is based at Cancer Council Victoria in Melbourne with regional managers on the ground in Fiji, Kenya and the Philippines. Its international capacity building programme has trained more than 270 lawyers and policymakers from 77 countries on how to develop, implement and defend public health laws. With support from the McCabe Centre, alumni of program have helped pass and defend at least 25 laws and regulations, including tobacco control laws in Papua New Guinea, alcohol control laws in Vietnam, and a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in the Solomon Islands.  

“In just 10 years, the McCabe Centre has united a global network of partners in government and civil society, empowering them to advance cancer control laws through outstanding capacity building and expert technical support. And they have done it all with great care and professionalism.”
– Dr Cary Adams, CEO of UICC

The McCabe Centre’s work in Australia includes collaborating with Cancer Council to develop the Standard for Informed Financial Consent, which aims to protect Australians with cancer from unexpected expenses, and contributing to the Victorian Health Complaints Act 2016, which helps Australians recognise and report unsafe treatments for cancer.

“Cancer Council Australia knew from the start that the McCabe Centre could shape how societies prevent cancer and protect people affected by it. Ten years on, the whole world knows it, and countless people are better off for their efforts.”
– Tanya Buchanan, CEO of Cancer Council Australia 

The McCabe Centre is also known worldwide for its work supporting tobacco plain packaging law, building on Australia’s experience as the first country to introduce plain packaging in 2013. The McCabe Centre has now worked with more than 17 countries that have passed their own plain packaging laws.

In 2013, the McCabe Centre became the first Knowledge Hub of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC), focusing on legal challenges to tobacco control laws. It is also the WHO Collaborating Centre on Law and Noncommunicable Disease, collaborating with WHO Regional and Country offices to support local governments. These cross-sector collaborations will be key to McCabe Centre's impact into the future, according to Hayley Jones, Director of the McCabe Centre.

"It has been a tremendous team effort over the past 10 years. We look forward to continuing to empower our network of alumni who advance laws in their countries, our civil society partners who unite communities to take action and the people affected by cancer who bravely stand up for their right to health."
– Hayley Jones, Director, McCabe Centre for Law & Cancer

Engaging with law and policy for cancer prevention and control

The McCabe Centre for Law & Cancer is delivering a Master course for UICC members from 4 April to 31 August 2022 via UICC's elearning platform. The course will look at the relevance of international law in cancer prevention as well as using the law effectively to advance Universal Health Coverage in a time of COVID-19.