By Our Reporter
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has disclosed that his Ministry is proud of the innovations currently going in the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT) in an effort to improve cancer care and research in Nigeria.
The Minister stated this while declaring open the one-day dialogue on “improving the effectiveness of cancer registration in Nigeria,” in Abuja, on Monday.
Represented by the Special Advisor to the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Lola Adeyemi, the Minister charged participants at the dialogue to come up with resolutions that will improve the functionality of cancer registries in the country.
“The Ministry is extremely impressed by the activities going in NICRAT. There is never a time in Nigeria that cancer issues have been addressed like now. It is my believe that the meeting will come up with solutions that will improve cancer registry in Nigeria,” the Minister stressed.
It would be recalled that, recently, NICRAT in collaboration with stakeholders developed 3 very critical national documents which are aimed at improving cancer research and treatment in Nigeria.
The three documents include National Cancer Research Agenda 2024-2028; National Strategic Plan for Prevention of Cancer of Uterine cervix 2023-2027 and National Strategic Cancer Control Plan 2023-2027.
All the 3 documents have priority areas of action that address governance, prevention, supply chain management, data and research as well as surveillance.
Speaking, the Director General of NICRAT, Prof. Usman Malami, lamented what he described as the prevailing challenges in the fight against cancer in Nigeria.
Some of the challenges, according to him, include “the scarcity of credible and accurate data on cancer incidence, morbidity, mortality, survival rates and related aspects in Nigeria.
“This scarcity hampers our ability to formulate informed strategies, allocate resources efficiently, and ultimately to make a lasting impact on the fight against cancer in our nation.
“Our nation faces this formidable challenge that hinders our ability to design and implement effective strategies for cancer control, research, prevention, and treatment.”
While appealing to the participants to come up with solutions that will improve the current situation of cancer registries in the country, Prof. Malami said: “We come together to confront this challenge head-on, leveraging the collective expertise in this room to brainstorm and forge solutions that will shape the future of cancer care in our country.
“As we delve into this discussions, it is imperative that we acknowledge the hurdles faced by our existing cancer registries. These invaluable repositories of information face significant challenges due to a lack of funding and operational difficulties among other challenges.
“During this meeting, our erudite presenters will shed light on these obstacles, seeking your insights and collaboration to overcome them. Your input is crucial as we strive to fortify the foundations of our data infrastructure.”
The dialogue attracted prominent stakeholders in the cancer space including the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of Usman Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto, Prof. Anas Ahmad Sabir, who is also the Secretary, Committee of Chief Medical Directors of Tertiary Hospitals in Nigeria
