This is a rare compilation of clinically focused chapters on the practice of oncology in more than 25 countries and areas around the world that experience ongoing or intensifying ethnic, religious, and nationalistic conflict. Each chapter is written by an internationally respected local physician or nurse. Topics include the relationship between local culture and the local practice of mainstream modern medicine, critical clinical issues faced by local physicians, and options for when and how to incorporate palliative care. The book ends with chapters on the United States' current initiatives on promoting cancer care training in these regions, and another on clinical concepts for Western clinicians undertaking oncology practice in emerging countries.

The audience includes oncologists around the world: those practicing medicine in similarly extreme circumstances; Western oncologists organizing or preparing for medical missions; and Western oncologists who wish to learn from the experiences of oncologists who practice under radically different conditions.