Lagos – Dr Abia Nzelu, the Executive Secretary, Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CECP-Nigeria), has identified infrastructure deficit and system of prevention as the main challenges of managing cancer in Nigeria.
Nzelu said this at a cancer awareness and free screening programme organised for members of the public at the Media Centre of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
CECP-Nigeria is a non-governmental organisation championing the course of early detection and prevention of the deadly cancer diseases.
She said that lack of culture of routine screening had also led to the death of many prominent Nigerians.
“One woman dies of cervical cancer in Nigeria every hour because most Nigerian women lack the information about screening for cancer.
“For want of five minutes screening and 15 minutes of treatment, many souls were lost to cancer diseases.
“Most lives are lost because of the late presentation and detection of cancer in the body, but this can be prevented by early detection.
“One third of cancer cases are preventable, if they are reported early; so we need more health education, vaccination and prompt treatment,’’ Nzelu said.
According to her, it is much more expensive to treat cancer than to prevent it.
“So, the focus should be more on prevention, because most of the cancer diseases can be picked up early.
“If you carry out screening regularly, you are more likely to pick up the pre-cancer stage and you will be able to catch it early before it gets worse,’’ she said.
Nzelu said that early detection and prompt treatment still remained key in the prevention of cancer.
She said that Nigeria would need a system where everyone should be able to have access to screening.
Nzelu said: “A Mobile Cancer Centre (MCC) will give more people equal opportunity to be screened.
“If we have a Mobile Cancer Centre in a state, for instance, and have a roster, every community will be reached at least once in a year.
“So, when the mobile centre goes round the community once a year, you will find out that more people will have equal chance of getting screened.’’
She said that the free cancer screening was “a foretaste of the more extensive community-based, mass cancer screening that will take place following the acquisition of the Mobile Cancer Centres.
“This is the goal of the `BIG WAR Against Cancer in Nigeria’, the flagship focal cause of CECP.
“The `BIG WAR’ against Cancer is aimed at taking holistic healthcare to the Grassroots, using Mobile Cancer Centres and Comprehensive Cancer Centres (CCC).’’
The committee scribe said that the first phase involves raising funds to acquire/deploy 37 MCC, one for each state and Abuja.
“An MCC is much more than a Mobile Mammogram. Rather, it is a clinic on wheels, in which screening, follow-up and treatment (including surgeries), can take place.
“It includes facilities for mammography, sonology, colonoscopy, colposcopy and cryotherapy as well as a surgical theatre,’’ Nzelu said.
She said that it was also equipped with facilities for screening against most common diseases, including the 10 major cancer-related killer diseases.
“Diabetes, Renal Disease, Obesity, Malaria, Schistosomiasis, Helicobacter pylori, Hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and Hypertension),’’ Nzelu said would also be screened by the MCC.
She urged people to imbibe a healthy life style of avoiding smoking, excess alcohol intake, excessive sunlight, unsafe sex and unhealthy environment.
Nzelu expressed regrets that of every five Nigerian that have cancer, only one survives.
“It means that four of them die and most of the people who survived are those who travel out to receive treatment.
“Even at that, lots of people who also travel abroad still end up dying, mostly, because of late detection,’’ she said.
Some of the beneficiaries of the programme commended the organiser, saying that if afforded them the opportunity of knowing their health status.
One of the beneficiaries, Mrs Mark Virgina, said: “I am happy to be at the free cancer screening.
“It is like an eye opener for me. I think it is good for everyone to be checked for their health status.
“The statistics of those that died as a result of cancer is disastrous, we Nigerians need to collectively fight against the deadly diseases,’’ Virgina, who is a trader at Orile-Iganmu, said.
In his remarks, Mr Adebayo Diya, a business man in Surulere, Lagos, said that many people were not aware of this early detection of cancer.
“I for one had delayed for many years to do this cancer screening.
“The best thing to allay the fear of cancer is to do the test as soon as possible,’’ said Diya.
Also, Mr Solomon Fagbenro, who claimed to be a 61-year old diabetic patient from Orile-Iganmu, said that the programme was an interesting one.
“I have been hearing about cancer screening for long and I want more awareness for this kind of programme.
“In UK where I was residing before, it is compulsory to undergo cancer screening, this must be replicated in Nigeria,’’ Fagbenro recommended.
