‘Cancer Kills 80,000 Nigerians Yearly’
Abuja, By Edegbe Odemwingie
— July 13, 2014
An estimated 80,000 Nigerians die of cancer
yearly, a member of the House of
Representatives, Hon. Bassey Dan-Abia has
reported.
To this end, federal lawmakers have passed
for second reading a Bill in the House
seeking the establishment of a National
Cancer Institute. The Bill was subsequently
referred to the House Committee on Health
for further legislative inputs.
The Bill entitled: ” A Bill for an Act to
provide for the prevention, treatment and
control of cancer in Nigeria and for
connected purposes” was sponsored by Dan-
Abia (Akwa Ibom/PDP).
The lawmaker who led debates on the
general principles of the Bill stated that
urgent steps was needed to contain the
disease which has decimated “the mighty,
the upright, the not so honest as well as the
lowly in the society”.
His words: “An estimated 80,000 cancer
related death occur in Nigeria every year
and 10 Nigerians die every hour. The death
rate of some common cancers in Nigeria is
alarming; 30 Nigerian women die everyday
from breast cancer; a Nigerian woman dies
every hour from cervical cancer; 8,900
Nigerians die from liver cancer every year;
prostrate cancer kills 14 nigerian men
everyday and every two hours a Nigerian
dies from colorectal cancer.”
He listed poorly distributed clinical services,
few centres with functional radiotherapy
equipment, surgeons with limited clinical
experience in oncology and expensive
radiologic services as some of the challenges
bedevilling cancer treatment in the country.
Dan-Abia said the situation had forced
Nigerians to seek medical services in India.
In detail, the functions of the proposed
cancer institute according to draft Bill
comprises:
“Encourage and secure the establishment of
hospitals, vocational treatment and care
centres and other institutions for the
welfare and treatment of persons with
cancer in all states of the federation.
“Encourage and secure provision of
diagnostic, treatment, rehabilitation and
other medical care to persons with cancer in
those institutions.
“Co-ordinate services provided in Nigeria for
the welfare and treatment of persons with
cancer and to implement programmes. For
vocational guidance and counselling.
“Collect, analyse and disseminate all data
useful in the prevention, diagnosis and
treatment of cancer;
“Collaborate with international institutions
for the purpose of collecting for the Register
and cataloguing, storing and disseminating
the results of cancer research undertaken in
any country for the use of any person
involved in cancer research in any country.”