Patients to wait longer for cancer centres as construction postponed

Cancer patients will have to wait for three more years to access convenient healthcare after the government pushed back timeline for the construction of the four treatment centres.

The centres to be set-up in Nyeri, Nyanza, Coast and Rift Valley regions at an estimated cost of Sh1 billion each will be ready by 2019, and not immediately as promised earlier. That means the majority of cancer patients without health insurance will continue to queue at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) for specialised treatment.

“Building the centre is a process, there will be training programmes to ensure that our human resource is revamped and ready so that quality healthcare is guaranteed,” said Health secretary Cleopa Mailu yesterday at the State House Health Summit.

“A county cancer centre is set to strengthen the capacity KNH. It will ensure that patients have access to healthcare from their home area, which consequently will mean that they will be receiving convenient healthcare and cheaper services since they will not need to visit Kenyatta.”

The government has so far invested 98.3 billion in specialised equipment in hospitals and free healthcare service which imply training is required before the centres can start operating.

Machines at the KNH failed

Government’s efforts to build the centres began in 2015 after radiotherapy machines at the KNH failed resulting in temporary suspension of cancer treatment.

The government promised to build an additional four centres, following a public outcry, to deal with the overwhelming number of cancer patients.
The national cancer programme being currently undertaken by the ministry also involves building of a cancer hub at the KNH that would also save Kenyans millions of shillings spent on referral treatment in India and other foreign countries.

The ministry has also embarked on National Hospital Insurance Fund recruitment drive, social protection in informal sectors targeting orphans and the elderly as well as training.

“What is taking most Kenyans to India is radiotherapy, and once our hospitals have the capacity this should ensure that people do not go out of the country for services that are offered in Kenya,” said PS Nicholas Muraguri.

Kenya reports about 40,000 new cancer cases annually, making it the third leading killer disease in Kenya after pneumonia and malaria, according to the Economic Survey 2016. Cancer related deaths have been rising steadily in the past five years from 11,995 in 2010 to 12,574 in 2012 to a high of 15,714 last year.