FAQs

FAQS

Krebsallianz is committed to transparency. In an effort to better serve and inform you, we have compiled a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). If you have other questions, please do not hesitate to contact us:

What type of organisation is Krebsallianz gGmbH?

Krebsallianz is an independent registered German charity in full compliance with German laws and regulations. Incorporated in 2005, our organisation is registered with the Handelsregister in Berlin (Amtsgericht Charlottenburg, HRB 98541 B). Krebsallianz is audited by an outside auditing firm and submits information annually to German regulatory authorities for review. We have received a tax exempt status from the regulatory authorities, to whom we submit annual reports for review.

What is the mission of the Krebsallianz gGmbH?

The mission of Krebsallianz is to reduce the suffering of cancer patients and their families by fulfilling unmet needs. With a primary focus on children, we provide medical relief to patients with cancer and other serious diseases, and promote knowledge through educational programs throughout the world to improve the patient's outcome and quality of life. Our future goals include increased support of pediatric cancer research. Providing medical solutions for those most in need - that is our priority.

What type of products does Krebsallianz gGmbH provide to overseas public hospitals and clinics?

Krebsallianz provides valuable medical goods such as cancer medicines, primary and adjunctive cancer therapies, specialty therapies, essential medicines, as well as valuable medical supplies. In time, we hope to be able to expand our operations to provide innovative medical equipment. We receive donated medical products from German manufacturers and organisations, as well as those from the EU and USA. All of our products are new and in excellent shape. Our aim is to utilise these medical goods to fulfill the unmet needs of the underserved patients that are treated at public hospitals in the developing world. Our donated products range from leading pediatric leukemia medicines to innovative brain tumor therapies to specialty biological hematology therapies to standard medicines to prevent nausea and vomiting during chemotherapy to new medical supplies produced by one of Germany’s leading manufacturers. These are all necessary tools and resources that we are using to save the lives of poor patients in the developing world.

Why don’t the overseas governments help their own people with cancer directly? 

The reality is that, in most developing world countries, cancer is not a priority. Ministry of Health budgets are typically stretched and underfunded and there are not sufficient funds to properly diagnose and treat patients with limited financial means or insurance. It is typically the responsibility of the patient and his or her family to pay for their required treatments when they have a long-term or chronic disease like cancer. These costs are impossible for most individuals, as the majority of these poor patients that seek treatment at the public hospitals in the developing world live on 1 or 2 Euro per day, with no national government safety net to assist them during a personal healthcare crisis. Without donations of required chemotherapies and medical products, these underserved patients would go without their required medicines.

Does Krebsallianz gGmbH provide direct financial assistance to underserved cancer patients in the developing world? 

This is seldom possible, as our resources would be spent on just a few patients. In line with our strategic plan, Krebsallianz leverages its resources to be able to positively affect a much larger number of cancer patients that need help. The key to this accomplishment is via the network of overseas public hospitals that we have created in the developing world. By solidifying these relationships and knowing the needs of their patients, Krebsallianz is able to utilize its expertise to fulfill the required needs by using its contacts and relationships to provide its expert services, which include: securing donated medicines, logistics in the developing world, monitoring, securing feedback, and measuring impact related to those donations. For each donation to our foundation, we are able to leverage those funds to provide the greatest quantity requested and required of medical goods to reach individuals who otherwise would not receive assistance.

Does the German government provide support to Krebsallianz gGmbH? 

Krebsallianz is a public charity and we receive our funding and resources from individuals like you and from corporations and other foundations. We do not receive any direct funding from the German government, nor do we seek this type of support. Germany, like most EU countries, tends to support overseas humanitarian health relief when there is a natural disaster like an earthquake, tsunami, and hurricane or in instances of long-term maternal-child health development programs. Unfortunately, besides the infectious disease programs in existence in Africa and elsewhere, there is limited support for overseas underserved patients with life-threatening chronic or devastating diseases like cancer. However, the German government is aware and supports our overseas humanitarian programs. We are a charity in good standing by the German tax authorities and German ambassadors stationed in the developing world participate in our official hand-over ceremony events in Latin America.

Shouldn’t the German government be supporting the overseas cancer hospitals instead of Krebsallianz gGmbH taking on this role ? 

This is possible, but Krebsallianz is better positioned to make the most impact. Krebsallianz, through its network, has the established relationships with the public cancer hospital’s physicians and administrators. We know the needs of these institutes and are in the best position to coordinate and address their resource problems. Through our network, we also have the connections with the donor medicine and medical product manufacturers. Krebsallianz has the personnel within our organization stationed in German and in the overseas regions to properly track and monitor the medicine donations. Our Medical Director is stationed in Latin America. Shipping medicines into many of these countries is a very involved process that requires specialized planning and logistics. We make special concessions for medicines that are fragile or require cold-chain refrigeration. Krebsallianz is quite involved in all aspects of the process and we have many partners on the ground in the various overseas countries that help verify patient medicine requests, required documentation, logistics, customs clearances, warehousing and storage, delivery of medicines, as well as monitoring and reporting. Krebsallianz is committed to utilizing our public support to fund the most efficient and effective program possible. Our aim is to run a transparent program that helps victims of cancer one patient at a time.

The German government is not set up to run this type of program and would not receive the donated pharmaceuticals products on the same scale as Krebsallianz, which is the most established German foundation that provides this type of overseas cancer relief. Depending on the country in the EU, there are specific tax benefits that pharmaceutical and other medical product manufacturers receive when they donate valuable medicines to registered charities like Krebsallianz. This generosity of the German government to pharmaceutical manufacturers indirectly helps underserved cancer patients in the developing world to receive the medical goods that they require for treatment. Krebsallianz very much appreciates this support from the German government. 

Can I donate used medical equipment or supplies to Krebsallianz gGmbH?

Unfortunately, Krebsallianz is not able to accept used or personal medical items from individuals. Our donation projects typically benefit hundreds or even thousands of cancer patients at a time, since our shipments tend to be on a large scale. Our typical donations consist of many pallets air shipped or of ocean containers loaded with required pharmaceuticals or medical goods to overseas public hospitals. We do not have the designated staff in our warehouse facilities to refurbish used items or have the extra space required to properly store it. Krebsallianz never accepts medicines that were previously prescribed to a patient. Our donations come in bulk and we track the medicines by lot number.

Can my company donate medical goods to Krebsallianz gGmbH?

For offers of medical products, use the contact form to email us and we will  respond to your offer right away. In order to access an offer, Krebsallianz would need to know the type of product, quantity, expiration date, manufacturer, condition of the goods, location, and any restrictions related to the donation.

If I no longer want to receive Krebsallianz gGmbH literature or campaigns, what should I do?

If you wish to be removed from our mailing lists, please use the contact form to email us. Donations help us save lives, but we have no desire to contact anyone who does not wish to be contacted. Our goal is to serve our constituents and to increase support of our cancer programs that are making a difference in the fight again cancer. Please know that name removals may take over three months to take effect in our entire mailing process, so please disregard any literature that you receive in the meantime.

Read more about our work:

Orden de Malta Guatemala Krebsallianz's Partner

The mission to help the sick and the needy. Following its historic mission to help the sick, the needy and the most disadvantaged in society, the Order of Malta continues its work today, operating in more than 120 countries. Its programmes include medical and social assistance.