FG Unveils New Cancer Plan, Prioritizes Support for Survivors

Dr. Usman Aliyu, the Director-General of the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment, has announced the Federal Government’s commitment to adequately supporting cancer survivors in a new policy.

This initiative is part of the government’s comprehensive approach to cancer prevention and treatment in Nigeria.

According to Dr. Aliyu, the institute, established in January, has diligently worked on three essential cancer policies focusing on prevention, treatment, and research since its inception.

“We have drafted our second National Strategic Cancer Control Plan. The first one that was ever drafted for the country was for 2018 to 2022, which has expired, but I’m happy to announce to you that the institute has drafted a new cancer plan.

“It is a five-year plan that will span from 2023 to 2027, which is all-encompassing. The plan will be a leading guide to all the activities of cancer in the country, and it cuts across the area of cancer prevention, diagnosis, treatment, palliative care, and even survivorship for the first time.

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“We are having this component of cancer survivorship in our plan for survivors, which is actually a neglected area.”

The institute has collaborated with prominent organizations like the World Health Organization to develop the nation’s inaugural National Cervical Cancer Control Plan 2023-2027. This plan aligns with the WHO’s objective to eliminate cervical cancer globally by 2030, outlining a strategic roadmap for the institute’s efforts in this direction.

“We have drafted the first National Cancer Research Agenda 2024-2028 for the country that will give way and pave a direction for cancer research in Nigeria”, he said.

These groundbreaking documents are set to be officially inaugurated during the 2023 International Cancer Week in Abuja, scheduled from October 23 to 26.

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The theme, ‘Addressing Cancer Care Disparities through Research and Improved Access to Treatment,’ addresses the global effort to bridge gaps in cancer care, especially in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC), with a significant focus on Sub-Saharan Africa.

“If you look at the disparities that we have in the areas of maybe the race, ethnicity and even tribal, it is gross, so the concept was coined out of what the global scientists are focusing on now.

“If you look at America, they are pumping a lot of resources in the area of cancer prevention, research, and treatment, but they are not getting the outcome they are expecting then they embarked on research.

“In 2022, we had almost 19.7 million new cases and more than 10 million deaths from cancer, and there is a report that by the next few decades, this is going to increase by 70 percent.

“About 80 percent of this number is going to emanate from Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC) or which is majorly Sub-Saharan Africa.”

He added that it was a pointer to something being wrong, which indicates the disparity in cancer care.

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