The Federal Government has raised alarm over the growing burden of cancer in Africa, saying the disease now claims more lives than war and kills more Africans than HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined.
Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Adekunle Salako, disclosed this on Friday at the African Organisation for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC) and the Best of ASCO Africa 2026 conference in Abuja. Citing Global Cancer Observatory (GLOBOCAN) data, he said Africa recorded 1,187,697 new cancer cases and 721,629 cancer-related deaths in 2024.
Salako said Nigeria accounts for about 10.5 per cent of the continent’s cancer burden, placing it among the three most affected countries alongside Egypt and South Africa. He attributed the high mortality to late detection, inadequate treatment facilities, lifestyle changes, environmental risks and poor access to quality healthcare.
He said the conference theme, “From Global Discovery to Local Recovery: Driving Africa to the Cutting Edge of Cancer Care,” reflects the need for African countries to adopt practical solutions that improve cancer care. According to him, the continent must strengthen collaboration and make healthcare a major Pan-African priority.
The minister said Nigeria is implementing the National Cancer Control Plan 2026–2030 with the target of reducing the country’s cancer burden by 30 per cent before the end of the decade. He added that a National Technical Working Group has been inaugurated to coordinate the implementation of the plan.
Earlier, the Director-General of the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT), Prof. Usman Aliyu, said the institute has trained about 140 early-career scientists under its Strengthening Institutional Capacity in Cancer Research (SINCA) programme and awarded research grants to 24 researchers to strengthen cancer research in Nigeria.
Conference Chair and North America Vice-President of AORTIC, Dr. Abiola Ibraheem, said while global cancer research has recorded significant breakthroughs, many African patients still lack access to modern treatment. She stressed the need for stronger collaboration, improved funding and better healthcare systems to ensure scientific advances translate into better outcomes for patients across the continent.
