A new childhood cancer diagnosis and treatment centre has opened at Hakim Children's Hospital in Tehran, with officials saying it could ease the financial burden on families.
The opening ceremony was attended by First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref and Health Minister Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi, according to the Iranian news agency ANA. It took place on a Thursday, coinciding with World Children's Day, ANA and Shafaqna reported.
Mohammad Eslami, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, also took part, along with Health Ministry officials, according to Shafaqna English. Spellings of the health minister's name vary between outlets, with some writing Zafarqandi.
A photo caption published by the state broadcaster Press TV dated the event to 8 October 2026. The three outlets, all Iranian, described the same ceremony and the same set of attendees.
After the opening, Aref and Zafarghandi toured the hospital's wards, ANA and Shafaqna reported. They met children who are receiving treatment, as well as their families.
A second project was launched on the same day. Construction began on the 320-bed Amir Alam 2 Hospital, according to ANA, Shafaqna English and Press TV.
Tehran University of Medical Sciences chancellor Reza Raeis-Karami spoke about both projects, as quoted by ANA. He said: "Today is an important day ahead of us, because we have two important projects." He was referring to the opening of the centre and the start of construction on Amir Alam 2 Hospital.
Raeis-Karami described the new facility as the first of its kind. In ANA's account, he said the opening of the centre meant that "the first university-based and public center in the field of childhood cancer treatment begins its activities".
The claim of a first comes only from Raeis-Karami, and the reports reviewed by Tehran Telegraph did not include independent confirmation of it. He also said that care in this field had previously been provided exclusively by the private sector. That claim, too, is his alone.
On costs, Raeis-Karami said the centre could reduce the financial burden on families, according to ANA and Shafaqna. ANA wrote that the centre "could help" lower costs, while Shafaqna said it was "expected to" do so.
Shafaqna added that he said radiotherapy costs are high in both the public and private sectors. He said that expanding access in the public system could help families.
No figures on fees, capacity, bed numbers or the date services would begin were included in the reports. No independent assessment of the expected savings had been reported, and no critics or opposing views were found in the coverage.
The English-language outlets also differ slightly in how they describe the centre. Some call it "university-affiliated" and others "university-based", while some say "government-run" and others "public".
Eslami spoke at the ceremony about Iran's nuclear medicine work, including alpha-emitting radiopharmaceuticals, according to Press TV. The broadcaster's main focus was his separate comments on uranium enrichment and the United States.
Childhood cancer care in Tehran is not new. Mahak, a charity, opened a specialist paediatric cancer hospital in the city. Wikipedia lists its opening as 2003, while a charity page gives 2007.
A 2021 page from the World Health Organization mentions 32 childhood cancer treatment centres or hospitals in Iran. It was not possible to confirm how those facilities are classified, so it is unclear how they compare with the description of the new centre given by Raeis-Karami.
The same year, the WHO, with European Union funding, supplied essential childhood cancer medicines to Iran, according to a WHO regional office report. This was because sanctions re-imposed in 2018 had made some specialist drugs scarce.
No international news agency coverage of the opening had been found. The details above rest on Iranian outlets, which in turn drew on the ceremony and on statements by officials.
