The commission is a voluntary organisation established to encourage the involvement of individuals, organisations and businesses in the activities of the Red Cross, Nguyen Thi Xuan Thu, its chairwoman said.

To mark the occasion the organisation began a charity programme to help 1,500 disadvantaged people get surgery and other treatment.

“For the Poor Patients” will pay the cost of the surgeries and treatment, give gifts to poor people and undertake other charity activities.

It will also sponsor screenings for breast, cervical and colon rectal cancers for 2,500 poor people at the HCM City University Medical Centre and Vinmec Centre Park International Hospital from September 23 to October 7.

The same day, the Military Hospital 175’s oncology centre performed free health checks and tests for cancer for 100 people to mark its fifth anniversary.

The hospital plans to hold an international symposium on cancer treatment on September 22.