Over 2,250 children die of cancer related cases annually, the experts have said

According to Dr Joyce Balagadde, the head of pediatric childhood department at Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI), 3,000 children develop cancer yearly but only 25% access care constituting 750 children.

“This means that 75% children are dying of cancer yearly,” Dr Balagadde said.

 She pointed out that the most common cancers among children in Uganda are leukemia (cancer of the blood) lymphoma (cancer of the lymph nodes) nephroblastoma (cancer of the kidney), and rhabdomyosarcoma (cancer of the muscles).

Dr Balagadde made the remarks during the cancer survivors’ symposium in Kampala held under the theme: “September gold surviving positively.”

Dr Joyce Balagadde (centre) interacts with Mariam Ndagire (left) senior nursing officer and board member UCI Fatia Nakiyange during the cancer survivors symposium in Kampala.

The symposium was organised by Uganda Cancer Society in conjunction with Uganda Cancer Institute and Uganda Child Cancer Foundation.

The expert noted that leukemia, lymphoma and kidney cancer are among the curable cancers in the world.

Dr Balagadde underscored the need of awareness creation among the population to seek medical care for early detection and improving the health system referrals.

The permanent secretary of the ministry of health, Dr Diana Atwiine, who was represented, by the commissioner of clinical services Dr Rony Ruhatangire said cancer is emerging a leading killer of children in Africa, causing more childhood deaths than HIV, Malaria and TB combined.

She said each year 400,000 children are diagnosed with cancer, 25% of these are in Africa where only 30% survive this scourge.

Dr Atwiine explained that is WHO has identified childhood cancer as a priority area for governments globally as enshrined in the WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer that was launched in 2018 “to improve survival of childhood cancer to 60% and alleviate suffering for all.”

She said Uganda Cancer Institute has been able to provide services that cure 50% of children with the most common childhood cancers in Uganda.

The executive director of Uganda Cancer Society, Dennis Olodi, observed that in order to improve cancer care in the country there is need to address gaps such as childhood cancer care services are still centralised at UCI, resulting in delays in accessing cancer care, radiotherapy services are limited with only two machines, shortage of oncologists, pathologists, oncology nurses, misdiagnosis, patient record management system is mainly paper based which prevents information to be readily shared and others.

Commissioner in the ministry of health Dr Rony Bahatungire (left) interacting with Dr Joyce Balagadde during the cancer survivors symposium in Kampala.

Olodi explained that Uganda Cancer Institute remains the only fully fledged comprehensive cancer treatment center located in the central region, serving a population of over 42 million Ugandans (young people 0-30 years make 78% of the population) and this has resulted in delays in accessing cancer care.

He said at the Uganda Cancer Institute, 10% of patients treated with cancer are children 0-18 years, with the most common cancers being acute leukemia, and lymphoma.

He observed that human resource capacity for cancer diagnosis and treatment is still insufficient.

Olodi called for more pathology laboratories to support cancer diagnosis in the country and appealed to the government and development partners to fund cancer programmes

He said civil society in Uganda fully supports the Ministry of Health vision of ensuring a healthy and productive population and this can be achieved if efforts around cancer control are given key priority.

During the symposium the cancer survivors association was launched