‘Nigeria has less than 90 cancer specialists’

There are less than 90 oncologists (cancer specialists) caring for the cancer care needs of over 200 million Nigerians, a cancer advocacy organisation, Project Pink Blue.

Runcie Chidebe, Executive Director, Project of the organization, stated this Wednesday in Abuja during the launch of a training programme for cancer specialists tagged ‘Upgrade Oncology’.

He said the mass migration of healthcare workers from Nigeria to foreign countries in recent years had worsened the inequitable distribution of health care workers in the country.

He said it was estimated that Nigeria would need approximately 149,852 doctors and 471,353 nurses by 2030, but that only 99,120 doctors and 333,494 nurses would be available based on the growth rate

“With the above data, by 2030, Nigeria will have a shortage of 50,120 doctors and 137,859 nurses, translating to 33.45% and 29.25% gap in doctors’ and nurses’ supply,” he said.

President, Nigeria Cancer Society, Dr Adamu Al-Hassan Umar, said the depreciating state of the country’s health facilities, late presentation, limited access to quality care, poor distribution of oncologists and high cost of cancer therapies among others were some for the biggest reasons for poor cancer outcomes in Nigeria.