The Compass
World Ralles Against Silent Killer, Cancer
Lagos, Nigeria — It is, perhaps, the greatest enemy of mankind today, felling both the young and the old, men and women. It takes no prisoners: Every of its victims must die; slowly, painfully. But when SEUN AKIOYE joined a group of world leaders at a parley in New York from june 18-21, he made startling discoveries: Of men and women who have engaged the silent killer in a battle of grit, and have survived. It is a tale of humanity’s brave attempt to conquer the conqueror, and give hope to the afflicted. It was also, however, another attempt by man (and woman) to dare death and come out of the experience unscathed. The report is presented on Pages 36, 37.
I’ve beaten cancer before, I’ll beat it again.
THEY had compelling stories; similar but yet different. It was their story of pain, of courage and hope in the fight against cancer. They had one mission: to persuade their different countries to sign up to the UN resolution on Cancer and other non communicable diseases and to proffer country specific strategies to tackle the epidemic.
It was held ahead of the United Nations (UN) High Level Meeting on Non Communicable Diseases (NCD), scheduled to take place on 19-20, September 2011 at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
At the parley, scores of cancer advocates, journalists and survivors gathered in New York from June 18-21, 2011 to evolve a strategy that would place cancer and other non communicable diseases on the global agenda of the United Nations.
Organised by the American Cancer Society (ACS), the organisation that has been at the fore- front of the fight against the disease globally, the meeting had as theme: We can, We should, We will Conquer Cancer.
The theme itself had set the motion and the atmosphere for the enlarged meeting. Alessandra Durstine, Vice President of Regional Strategies at the ACS said the United Nations High Level Meeting provides “an incredible opportunity to put the spotlight on the importance of cancer control and to give a global voice to those affected by cancer and other non communicable diseases.”
According to Nathan Grey, National Vice President of the ACS, as the world continues to make progress against such diseases as polio, malaria, HIV/Aids, Tuberculosis, cancer and other non communicable disease regoing in the opposite direction, because they have been largely ignored by policy makers and governments. “While we have made and continue to make progress against diseases that were termed incurable at some time,
cancer is still under reported and underfunded. The percentage of public and private health funding of cancer in low and middle income countries is just 5 percent,” Grey lamented.
According to the experts, cancer causes 1 in 8 deaths worldwide and is rapidly becoming a global pandemic. The International Agency for Research on Cancer estimates that there are 12.7 million new cancer cases and 7.6
million cancer deaths in 2008. If current trend continues, the global cancer burden is expected to nearly double to 21.4 million cases and 13.15 million deaths by 2030. Currently there are about 25 million cases worldwide.
According to the World Health Organisation over 80 per cent of cardiovascular and diabetes deaths, and almost 90 per cent of deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, occur in low- and middle-income countries. More than two thirds of all cancer deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. NCDs also kill at a younger age in low- and middle-income countries, while 29 per cent of NCD deaths occur among people under the age of 60, compared to 13per cent in high-income countries. The estimated percentage increase in cancer incidence by 2030, compared with 2008, will be greater in low-middle-income countries (82 per cent) and lower-middle-income countries (70 per cent) compared with the upper-middle- (58 per cent) and high-income countries (40 per cent).
According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), chronic disease are among one of the three greatest risks to the global economy, due to escalating costs of care, the threat to productivity from death and disability and the effects of costs on household impoverishment. In 2008, NCDs are said to account for nearly $1 trillion in economic losses due to premature deaths and disability.
The world health body also identified four main behavioural risks which if controlled, could greatly reduce the incidences of cancer and non communicable disease. The risk factors include: Tobacco use, physical inactivity, harmful use of alcohol and unhealthy diets.
Therefore in putting cancer on the UN global agenda, the ACS selected country ambassadors to act as pressure group in putting forward specific demands called ASKS to their country’s UN mission in New York. The ambassadors were selected from the civil society, media and cancer survivors. They were to specifically request the support of their country missions in the UN regarding cancer and NCDs.
Nigeria’s ambassadors include: Kemi Oyegbile, a breast cancer survivor, Princess Nikky Onyeri, founder of princess Nikky Breast Cancer Foundation and Seun Akioye a tobacco control advocate. The aim is to prepare the Nigerian mission ahead of the UN high level meeting in September. The UN General Assembly High-level Meeting on the Prevention and Control of Non- Communicable Diseases will bring together World’s heads of
states and government to develop global strategies to address the urgent problem of the rising rate of chronic and non communicable diseases as the world’s leading cause of death. The meeting is expected to generate global commitments and momentum towards the prevention and treatment of non communicable diseases.
The key argument for the ambassadors is to link cancer and other NCDs to development and social issues in order to secure their country’s commitment towards increasing participation and funding for cancer in their various countries and regions. The request to the Nigerian UN permanent representative, Professor Joy Ogwu was two-prong: accelerate the implementation of WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) to achieve a world free from tobacco by 2040 and, increase access to affordable drugs and technologies for cancer and other NCDs.
According to Oyegbile, being a cancer patient in Nigeria is almost like a death sentence due to acute shortage of essential drugs and technologies. Her battle and survival against such deadly disease spoke not of concerted government effort to alleviate cancer suffering in the country but of personal resilience and courage.
“I was diagnosed with cancer in 2003 after I had my baby. It was like a death sentence to me because at that time there were few chances for you to survive due to acute shortage of drugs and technology. There were few drugs and those few were expensive and far above the reach of an average cancer patient. I cried and cried thinking why it had to be me.”
Oyegbile lived to tell her story, but not after going through agonising chemotherapy and life changing surgery. She survived because she had the means to combat the disease which is not the case for every cancer patient in Nigeria.
On civil society efforts at creating cancer awareness, prevention and control, Oyegbile said: “Now I do a lot of counselling for those who have been affected by cancer. Cancer is not a death sentence and it should not be because it can be cured. What we have discovered is that while there have been slight improvements in terms of availability to drugs over the years, there are still a lot to be done.
“Most of the drugs are still above the reach of the ordinary cancer patient and there is not enough technology to do simple diagnostics. Sometimes, you may have to go all the way to the University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan to do a simple test.”
There have been intents at interventions by succeeding governments in Nigeria but all have ended at the planning stage. Wife of the former President Umaru Yar’Adua, Turai, in 2009, announced her intention to establish a world class cancer centre in Abuja. The only thing established was a massive expanse of land for the building of the centre.
In Lagos, the new cancer centre is yet to become fully operational after millions of naira were budgeted and allocated to it. The Federal Ministry of Health has no funding for cancer research, prevention and control. Nigeria has also become one of the countries where the chances of survival for cancer are at its lowest.
But the situation will change according to Nigeria’s ambassador to the UN. While acknowledging the daunting task before the Nigerian government in tackling the cancer epidemic, she assured that the situation will soon change and the country will begin to view the issue of cancer and other NCD with the seriousness it deserves. On the global front, she also assured that the country will champion the issue when it comes to the UN for debate.
For Akinbode Oluwafemi, Director, Corporate Accountability and Administration at the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN), the new revelations serve as a warning. “This is only a
confirmation of what we have always talked about. Tobacco use is a major risk factor for cancer and if we can put in place a policy that would control the use of tobacco and arrest the rising rate we would have succeeded in cutting the cancer epidemic by half in Nigeria.
Nigeria has made progress in the fight against tobacco epidemic. The National Assembly recently passed the National Tobacco Control Bill which was sponsored by Senator Olorunimbe Mamora. The bill, if implemented, would greatly reduce the rate of smoking especially among the youth. But the bill has run into some technical difficulties since it was passed. The National Assembly has not forwarded it to the President for his signature. This according to the anti tobacco activists would reverse all the gains of tobacco control in the country and posses fresh danger of cancer cases.
“We are therefore calling on the National Assembly to immediately transmit the National Tobacco Control Bill to the President for his signature. This is necessary in order to reverse the death rate associated with tobacco use and to consolidate on the gains that have been made in tobacco control in Nigeria, “Akinbode said.
While Nigerians await government intervention in cancer epidemic, more Nigerians will daily fall victim to the disease. Many more will die a slow and painful death. Nigeria’s ambassador Oyegbile got the doctor’s clean bill of health in 2004. In February 2011, she discovered to her shock that the cancer had spread to her bones. “I have beaten cancer once, I will beat it again. This fight is not for me alone, but for the thousands of voiceless cancer patients, undergoing untold sufferings and dying quietly,” she said.
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