Ahmed Ali Ahmed was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer in 2014 and since then, he has been travelling between Mandera and Nairobi — a distance of 1,200 kilometres — for treatment.
He says travel and treatment expenses have been a burden to his family, adding that friends and other relatives are becoming reluctant to assist him.
“I have been attending clinics in Nairobi almost every month, which has been costly. I must have at least Sh70,000 for all expenses whenever I am going for treatment,” he said.
He needs at least Sh30,000 for the return air ticket and the rest for medical bills and accommodation in Nairobi.
But now, Ahmed and many others like him from the Northern region may not have to travel so far for medical care after the Garissa Regional Cancer Centre was opened on Saturday.
“It is good news to me that the hospital has been brought to Garissa. I will move to Garissa and stay with my relatives as I seek treatment instead of spending a lot of money going to Nairobi,” he says.
A cancer patient visiting the Garissa centre will get screening, diagnosis, surveillance, treatment and palliative care.
Aisha Abdi, who is ailing from breast cancer, says the new centre has saved her the frequent, long and tedious journey to Nairobi for treatment.
“It has been expensive for me to travel to Nairobi. I have to incur travel costs, accommodation and it takes a lot of time before I am attended to at the Kenyatta National Hospital because the facility is crowded,” she says.
The Garissa Cancer Center was opened in October last year and it will address barriers to cancer treatment, such as late diagnosis, and provide care to the local community.
Most cancer patients in Mandera, Wajir and Garissa lacked access to cancer treatment for long, according to Garissa Governor Nathif Jama.
The disease’s prevalence rate in the region remains high, with prostate, esophageal, and colon cancers leading in men, while breast and cervical cancer are the most common in women.
Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha described the unveiling of the Garissa center as a significant milestone in the history of the country.
The CS urged health officials to lead in creating awareness, saying late diagnosis results in poor treatment outcomes and low survival rates.
“Through this launch, minority communities that inhabit this region, who have contributed greatly to our nation through animal husbandry, yet have historically suffered from lack of specialised care access are poised to greatly benefit from devolved healthcare services,” the CS said.
She said the heavy impact of cancer on individuals, households and entire communities through loss of productivity, catastrophic cost of care and premature deaths was well known.
She cited misinformation, stigma, inadequate infrastructure, untrained personnel and lack of equipment as the barriers to proper cancer treatment in Kenya.
Ms Nakhumicha said her ministry has prioritised the transformation of the health sector by addressing issues around access, cost and quality of healthcare through the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) agenda.
"We are implementing the National Cancer Control Strategy, which has various sustainable programmatic interventions to address barriers along the entire continuum of cancer care, from screening, diagnosis, surveillance, treatment, and palliative care,” she said.
The CS noted that last December, the ministry trained more than 20 healthcare workers on cervical and breast cancer screening through support from the Global Fund, and provided pap smear kits for screening.
Mr Jama pledged to ensure his administration works closely with the national government to ensure locals receive the health services they needed.
Head and neck cancers are the most common in Garissa, according to the Ministry of Health. These are cancers of the mouth, sinuses, nose or throat and may begin as a lump in the neck or a sore in the mouth or the throat that does not heal, difficulty in swallowing, and a change or hoarseness in the voice.
Head and neck cancers can also begin in the salivary glands, sinuses, muscles or nerves in the head and neck.
Rosemary Achieng says her daughter has been undergoing treatment at the Garissa centre after she was diagnosed with stomach cancer.
“When my six-year-old girl was diagnosed with stomach cancer I thought of going back to Kakamega, my home county for treatment but this facility saved me and she has been undergoing treatment for six weeks continuous,” she says.
According to Achieng, the Garissa centre is a relief to many cancer patients.
“I had been to so many facilities in the country but the Garissa facility relieved my burden because it is closer to my place of work,” she explains.
The burden of cancer has been rising over the past few decades and it is projected that by 2030, more than 13 million deaths annually will be due to cancer, with 75 per cent of all cancer deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries.
In Kenya, the health outcomes of cancer are concerning, as high mortality is attributed to cancer as the third leading cause of death.
The most recent data by the ministry shows that 7,502 cases were registered from 42 facilities across the country between July 2021 and June 2022 with most of them being stage three and four.
The most prevalent types of cancers continue to be breast at 15.9 per cent, cervical cancer at 13.3 per cent and oesophageal at 11.8 per cent.
Prostate cancer accounts for a quarter of all cases among men, with breast and cervical cancer accounting for more than a half the cases among women.
The CS revealed that close to three quarters of the reported cases did not report any comorbidities, however, the most reported comorbidities continue to be hypertension at 11 per cent, diabetes (six per cent) and HIV (six per cent).
The ministry has established regional cancer centres of excellence in over 10 counties namely Garissa, Meru, Nyeri, Embu, Garissa, Bomet, Machakos, Coast, Kakamega, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital in Kisumu and Makueni, which the CS said have expanded access to cancer treatment across the country.
“All these centers have revolutionised access to cancer care, and I'm glad to note that currently, nearly half of all cancer patients are now accessing care in these facilities," Ms Nakhumicha said.
