Experts have called for increased efforts and attention towards tackling childhood cancers in the country.
They made the call in Abuja during the national stakeholder’s prioritisation workshop for childhood cancers in Nigeria, organized by the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT).
The Director-General of NICRAT, Prof. Usman Aliyu Malami, said childhood cancer is a deeply concerning issue that requires urgent attention and collective action.
He said the workshop was an opportunity to prioritise and strategise around the specific needs of childhood cancer care in Nigeria.
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He said, “Through open dialogue, collaboration, and innovation, we aim to develop a roadmap that will guide our efforts in improving the diagnosis, treatment, and long-term care for children affected by cancer.”
A paediatric consultant, and founder of Medicaid Cancer Foundation, Dr. Zainab Shinkafi- Bagudu said, “Childhood cancers have a lot of survival disparities in that there is a 90% chance of survival for children from high income countries. But children from low income countries like Nigeria, have a survival rate of about 20%.”
She said studies have shown that this was due to lack of access to care, such as medication and treatment modalities, and poor diagnosis.
She said, “There are some high end medications that are used commonly in industrialised countries that we do not have access to. But the more common one that we can easily take care of is that of late diagnosis due to low clinical acumen from the clinicians. So this kind of workshop is going to help us to build the capacity of health care workers so that they have a higher index of suspicion for diagnosing pediatric cancers.”
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Tunji Alausa, said the partnership with St Jude Global would go a long way in addressing pediatric cancers in the country.
Represented by Dr Lolade Adeyeme, of the ministry, he said there is need for partnership with other stakeholders, adding that learning from the experiences of others will help the country achieve some of its targets.
A paediatric oncologist from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital , Dr Nickhill Bhakta, said the organisation is committed to working with all partners, including government, hospitals, clinicians, and other health workers at all levels to ensure survival of children from childhood cancer.
He said the partnership with Nigeria includes building the capacity of Nigerian pediatric cancer doctors, nurses, pharmacists, surgeons, and the radiologists among others.
He said the organisation works in 84 countries around the world and has committed to invest $200 million over the next five years, towards a global fund for childhood cancer drugs, together with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and UNICEF.
