Richard Ekwan, a health educator at the Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI) says that over 80 percent of the patients that go to the UCI for either cancer screening, management or treatment end up dying.

Ekwan said that the low survival rate results from the delay by the patients to do cancer tests and seek the right treatment and management from the cancer experts.

He was on Saturday addressing a health camp organized by the UCI in conjunction with the Rotary Club of Sonde held at Goma Health Centre III in Mukono Municipality. The UCI staff did breast, cervix and prostate cancer screening.

Residents donating blood during the health camp held at Goma Health Centre III in Mukono Municipality.

The UCI is said to receive between 15-30 new cancer patients per day. In 2018, Globocan statistics on cancer in Uganda, compiled by the World Health Organisation indicated that 32,617 new cancer cases were recorded. Out of those, 18,068 were female whereas 14,569 were male. The number of cancer deaths stood at 21,829 of which 11,819 were among females and 10,010 in males.

Ekwan extended the blame to ignorance about cancer that propels many of its victims to spend money and time in shrines accusing their close relatives, friends and neighbors of bewitching them.

Richard Ekwan, the health educator at Uganda Cancer Institute.

He says that on the side of those who are religious, instead of going to the UCI as some are recommended by the health practitioners, they end up in churches to seek divine intervention from the mushrooming pastors.

He, therefore, added that as a result, many cancer victims go to the UCI when they are at dangerous stages, which can’t even enable them to get total treatment hence leaving them at the margin of death.  

Leah Kasule, a health practitioner with the UCI said in 1998 when she was working with the Uganda Commercial Bank, she did a self-examination and realized that she had breast cancer.

Kasule however adds that when the experts told her that they were going to cut off her breast, she resorted to endless crying as she could not risk losing her breast just like that.

She therefore resorted to seeking for services of another junior health worker who accepted to just get out the affected part and leave her breast on.

Unfortunately, Kasule says that instead, cancer escalated and spread to other parts of the body. But she was later treated and received the full treatment including chemotherapy and she completely healed.

“It’s not easy to let your body parts be cut off. More so women find it hard losing their breasts because they are the reasons as to why their lovers fell in love with them. But keeping a cancerous body party is so dangerous, it's better they remove it and you stay healthy,” she stresses.

Janet Nakasujja, a resident of Seeta said she had has always wanted to do both breast and cervix cancer screening but she had not got the opportunity.

Leah Kasule, a 23-year breast cancer survivor.

“Therefore, when I heard the UCI announcing a health camp at Goma Health Centre III, I decided to use the opportunity,” she said.

According to Ekwan, Ugandans are mostly diagnosed and die of breast, cervix, and prostate cancer. He however says when detected early in the first stages, they can be treated and one survives for even another twenty years or more.

Catherine Barasa, the President of the Rotary Club of Sonde said that apart from cancer screening, they also worked with Nakasero Blood Bank and carry out blood donation. Barasa added that this health camp marks the end of the club’s first 100 days and that it will be carried out annually.