PET Scan, one of the most important devices for early and accurate cancer diagnosis, has become a recurring promise of the Ministry of Health. In less than two years, three different ministers have publicly mentioned it as part of investments in oncology, but Albanian patients still do not have a functional public PET-CT service in the country.
The first public promise was made by Albana Koçiu in November 2024, during meetings in Vienna with leaders of the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA. On November 27, 2024, Koçiu declared that Albania was working to introduce the first hybrid PET-CT device, calling it “a major step in the early diagnosis of oncological diseases.” She emphasized that this device would enable earlier and more accurate identification of cancer, increasing the chances of effective treatment and longevity.
But Koçiu's statement was not about a device coming to Albania. It was a promise in progress: "we are working to bring it." Nearly a year and a half later, PET Scan was still not a functional public service.
Later, the promise was taken up by her successor, Evis Sala, herself with a strong professional profile in the field of oncological imaging. In the Assembly, on 23 April 2026, Sala spoke about the reform in oncology and investments in equipment. She said that for PET-CT, close work was being done with the IAEA, not only for the purchase of equipment, but also for the establishment of the service and the training of medical teams, since according to her this service requires highly specialized personnel.
Even in this case, the PET Scan remained in the process phase: collaboration, planning, future purchase, and staff training. Not a service for patients.
The third promise came today from the new Minister of Health, Klodiana Spahiu. During the interpellation in the Assembly, she raised the stakes politically higher, setting a deadline. Spahiu declared that the Oncology Institute will be launched in January and that in January 2027 she will introduce PET Scan, otherwise she will resign.
"In January 2027, I will bring you that PET Scan, or I will resign," Spahiu declared in the Assembly.
So, from November 2024 to September 2026, PET Scan has gone from Koçiu's diplomatic promise in Vienna, to Evis Sala's technical explanation in the Assembly, to Klodiana Spahiu's promise with resignation. Meanwhile, oncology patients continue to face the lack of one of the most important instruments for diagnosing and staging the disease in the public system.
PET-CT is not a technological luxury. It is a device that helps in the early detection of cancer, determining whether the disease has spread, assessing the response to treatment and planning therapies. In many European countries it is a normal part of the diagnostic chain for oncology patients. In Albania, for two years, it has still been part of political statements.
Three ministers. Three formulas. The same promise. And still the same gap for patients.
