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ABUJA – The Federal Government has launched a nationwide free cancer screening programme in a major push to curb Nigeria’s rising cancer burden, targeting 6,000 Nigerians across the six geopolitical zones for early detection and intervention.
The initiative, flagged off at the weekend by the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Abeokuta, Ogun State, is aimed at reducing cancer-related deaths through early diagnosis.
Describing cancer as a growing public health crisis, Salako said Nigeria currently bears the highest cancer burden in Africa in terms of incidence and mortality.
He noted that cancer-related deaths in the country now surpass fatalities from tuberculosis, malaria and HIV/AIDS combined, a trend he attributed largely to late presentation and delayed treatment.
The month-long screening programme will focus on breast, cervical and prostate cancers, the three most prevalent cancers in Nigeria, and will cover asymptomatic individuals to promote early detection before the onset of advanced disease.
According to the minister, breast cancer has a global mortality rate of about 28 percent, with Nigeria recording figures significantly higher than the global average. Cervical cancer, which accounts for about 21 percent of cancer deaths globally and locally, remains largely preventable and curable if detected early.
Prostate cancer, he added, is the most common cancer among men in Africa, while survival rates for childhood cancers remain markedly lower in low- and middle-income countries.
Salako said the programme aligns with the preventive healthcare agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, which prioritises cost-effective strategies to address diseases of public health importance.
He disclosed that the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare is also intensifying efforts to tackle cancer risk factors such as tobacco use, harmful alcohol consumption and environmental pollution.
Highlighting progress in prevention, the minister revealed that by late 2025, nearly 15 million girls aged nine to 14 had received the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine nationwide to protect against cervical cancer. He added that hepatitis B vaccination efforts are ongoing to reduce the incidence of liver cancer.
Salako further disclosed that the ministry is working toward the establishment of a national cancer screening programme, with pilot preventive oncology clinics already operational in six centres across the country.
Plans are underway to integrate basic cancer screening services into primary healthcare centres nationwide before the end of President Tinubu’s first term in May 2027.
To ensure quality service delivery, he said FMC Abeokuta would be supported by specialists from the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, during the screening exercise.
The minister commended the Ogun State government for providing an enabling environment for federal health institutions and praised the management of FMC Abeokuta for its commitment to improved healthcare delivery.
He urged Nigerians to take advantage of the free screening opportunity and adopt healthier lifestyles, stressing that early detection remains the most effective strategy for reducing cancer-related deaths in the country.
