Health
Africa must boost data-driven investments to curb cancer burden — NICRAT DG
The Director-General of the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment, Prof. Usman Aliyu, on Saturday called for data-driven investments and stronger coordination to tackle Africa’s growing cancer burden, saying the continent must move beyond discussions to concrete action.
Aliyu made the call during a panel session at the Best of ASCO Africa Conference, organised by the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment in partnership with the Africa Organisation for Research and Training in Cancer.
Declaring that Africa already knows what must be done to reduce cancer deaths, the NICRAT boss said the challenge lies in implementing proven strategies.
“Essentially, we need to walk the talk. Generally, we know what needs to be done. Our biggest problem is coordination.
“We know what to do, and we know who should do it. But everyone assumes that someone else will take responsibility, and in the end, nobody does ” Aliyu said.
He stressed that governments, health institutions and development partners must work together to build innovative, evidence-based models that prioritise prevention, early diagnosis and timely treatment.
“There is no better time than now to move from talking to taking action,” he said.
Highlighting efforts already underway, Aliyu disclosed that NICRAT had established the National Initiative on Cancer Aiding Detection, Treatment and Referral Network and a Preventive Epidemiology Centre to improve access to early cancer screening.
He added that the institute also maintains a cancer registry that captures patients’ information to support disease surveillance, monitor treatment outcomes and generate reliable data for policy decisions.
“This is a model that I believe can transform cancer care across the country,” he said.
Also speaking during the session, the Director of Human Health at the International Atomic Energy Agency, Austria, Dr. May Abdel-Wahab, urged African countries to base cancer investments on epidemiological evidence and health economics to maximise impact.
“The most important thing is to look at the epidemiology of the country and identify the most common cancers because you want to reach as many people as possible,” she said.
She noted that although prevention remains the most cost-effective intervention, governments must simultaneously invest in diagnosis, treatment and palliative care.
“We really need to conduct thorough upfront analysis before moving forward,” Abdel-Wahab added.
An oncologist at the Rwanda Cancer Centre, Dr. Theoneste Manirababa, identified limited access to care and shortages of healthcare workers as key barriers to improving cancer outcomes across Africa.
According to him, governments should strengthen patient navigation systems to ensure early diagnosis and develop health financing mechanisms that protect patients from catastrophic treatment costs.
“Many patients are lost somewhere along the care pathway… they may spend months or even years before reaching doctors who can diagnose them, by which time the disease is already at an advanced stage,” he said.
He added, “Governments need to establish healthcare financing systems so patients can be insured for their treatment costs and receive comprehensive care.”
The National Coordinator of the National Cancer Control Programme at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Uchechukwu Nwokwu, said meaningful progress would depend on stronger political commitment from African leaders.
“As important as prevention is, what Africa needs most is for our leaders to demonstrate political will because that is what will make them prioritise cancer and place it at the forefront of healthcare funding,” he said.
Nwokwu lamented that despite investments in training oncology professionals, many specialists leave their home countries or are unable to deliver services because of systemic challenges and inadequate infrastructure.
“The problem is not cancer itself. The problem is that cancer has not been identified as a priority by our political leaders. Once it becomes a priority, governments will begin providing the necessary infrastructure for prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment and workforce development,” he added.
The calls come as Africa faces a rapidly growing cancer burden. According to the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, the continent records more than one million new cancer cases and over 700,000 cancer-related deaths each year, with the figures projected to rise sharply due to population growth, ageing and increasing exposure to cancer risk factors.
Nigeria bears one of the highest cancer burdens in sub-Saharan Africa, recording an estimated 127,000 new cancer cases and nearly 80,000 deaths annually.
Breast, cervical, prostate, liver and colorectal cancers remain the country’s most common cancers, while late diagnosis, limited screening programmes, inadequate radiotherapy facilities, shortages of oncology specialists and the high cost of treatment continue to undermine survival rates.
The FG established the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment to strengthen cancer research, prevention, early detection and treatment.
Health experts, however, say sustained investments guided by reliable data, stronger coordination among stakeholders and increased political commitment will be critical to reducing cancer deaths across Nigeria and the wider African continent.
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