The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has donated a state-of-the-art digital mammography unit to the João de Barros Barreto University Hospital in Belém, Brazil, under the IAEA’s Rays of Hope initiative. The donation, which expands access to breast cancer screening and diagnosis in the Amazon region, was handed over on the sidelines of the 2025 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30), highlighting the Agency’s commitment to strengthen resilience of health systems amid growing challenges.
The new equipment will raise the hospital’s capacity to perform examinations for over 2000 women per year in Belém and across the Amazon region. Featuring advanced digital imaging technology, the mammography unit will enhance the accuracy and speed of breast cancer detection.
Belem, widely known as the gateway to the Amazon, serves as a vital hub for healthcare in northern Brazil. Spread across a vast geographical area, cancer care in the Amazon is challenging due to the remoteness of many communities and the concentration of health services in a few urban centres. Strengthening health systems in this region is difficult due to weak infrastructure, training needs and logistical barriers, which make access to timely diagnosis and treatment difficult for many patients.
The João de Barros Barreto University Hospital is a publicly funded institution that provides free healthcare services, while also serving as a centre for medical education, research, and training of health sciences students. The donation ceremony brought together IAEA staff, hospital representatives, and officials from the Brazilian National Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN) to mark the handover of the new digital mammography unit.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in Brazil. According to the National Cancer Institute, an estimated 73,610 new cases are expected in 2025, with an incidence rate of 66.5 per 100,000 women. Despite progress in early detection and treatment, breast cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the country, especially in underserved areas such as the Amazon. Expanding screening and diagnostic capacity is key to reducing mortality and improving women’s health outcomes.
This week’s donation builds on continuing IAEA support to expand breast cancer screening across the Amazon Basin. In 2023, under Rays of Hope, the Agency helped install mobile mammography systems on vessels operating along the Amazon River, bringing essential diagnostic services to remote and hard-to-reach communities.
“Through Rays of Hope, the IAEA supports countries like Brazil in strengthening sustainable, resilient health systems that protect women’s health and reduce inequalities, even in the most remote areas of the Amazon,” said Raul Ramirez Garcia, Section Head of the Division for Latin America and the Caribbean at the IAEA, at the donation event.
The arrival of this mammography unit represents an important step forward for women’s health in the Amazon region,” said Regina Feio Barroso, Superintendent of the Federal University of Pará Hospital Complex (CHU-UFPA), which includes the João de Barros Barreto University Hospital (HUJBB) and the Bettina Ferro de Souza University Hospital (HUBFS) and is linked to the Brazilian Hospital Services Company (Ebserh). “Mammography is essential for the early diagnosis and successful treatment of breast cancer, and this equipment will expand access to high-quality, equitable, and compassionate care at our hospital”.
The IAEA’s Rays of Hope initiative was launched in 2022 to expand access to life-saving cancer diagnosis and treatment in low- and middle-income countries. To date, over 90 countries have requested support and more than €90 million has been mobilized by donors and partners for the initiative. In Brazil, the IAEA continues to work closely with national and regional partners to strengthen capacities in radiology, nuclear medicine, and radiotherapy.
