Kenya has taken steps towards making cancer scourge a national priority following Monday’s launch of the Breast and Cervical Cancer Coalition.
This is a partnership between the Ministry of Health, Kenya and Siemens Healthineers on the sidelines of World Health Assembly meeting in Geneva, Switzerland.
Breast and cervical cancer currently constitute over half the cancer burden for women in sub-Saharan Africa, and in Kenya, they are responsible for almost a third of all the annual cancer-related deaths.
According to Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha, Kenya has been selected as the first Lighthouse country to champion efforts to mobilize multi-stakeholder commitments towards closing the women’s health gap, including innovative financing, supporting women’s health innovation, and amplifying a global agenda on the importance of healthy women to drive social and economic gains.
She noted that the coalition is a platform to accelerate and foster unprecedented collaborations and meaningful solutions between key stakeholders uniquely positioned to expedite action.
This coalition will respond to the country’s needs and challenges.
“The selection of Kenya as a Coalition lighthouse country is much appreciated.
I believe in the importance of this collaboration to address women’s cancers through customised impact-focused interventions, in line with Kenya’s priorities and plans for the realization of universal healthcare coverage,” she said.
“This initiative will contribute towards implementation of the National Cancer Control Strategy (2023-2027), in alignment with the WHO elimination strategy & activities, and other existing activities in managing Breast and Cervical Cancer in the country.”
The member of Siemens Healthineers Managing Board Elisabeth Staudinger on her part said “Bridging the women’s health gap and promoting healthy and long lives for women everywhere depends on political will, country-led action investments, and sustainable multisectoral partnerships.
With these elements in place, we can make strides to ensure women have equal representation in all aspects of healthcare”
The coalition is expected to provide ministers of health worldwide access to an expert network of partners and resources, facilitate in-country workshops for peer-to-peer exchange and help identify gaps and challenges where it can support public health goals.
Kenya, one of East Africa’s most populous countries, provides a case study on the severity of the problem.
According to the Global Cancer Observatory data for Kenya, breast cancer remains the most diagnosed cancer, with an annual incidence of 7,243 and 3,398 cancer-related deaths.
Cervical cancer — highly detectable and curable, and yet still one of the most common cancers worldwide — ranks as the country’s second-most frequent cancer among women and is Kenya’s leading cause of cancer mortality overall
Earlier this year during the Cervical Cancer Awareness Month in Taita Taveta County, the CS underscored the imperative need for collective action in tackling the escalating threat of the burden which according to statistics claim approximately nine Kenyan women’s lives each day.
She outlined measures to address the challenge, including comprehensive coverage of screenings, diagnostics, and treatments under the Social Health Authority (SHA), with a significant allocation earmarked specifically for cancer care.
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