Cancer victims are on the rise. They include children, who die of the disease almost daily nationwide. Experts describe the development as disturbing. WALE ADEPOJU writes.
His voice was laden with sadness. “My boy is gone! Joseph has gone home! Thank you for writing about him,”says Pastor Sunday Olorunlagbara, when his 13 year-old son, Joseph died last Tuesday at the Paediatric Oncology Ward of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH).
His son’s case is one of many experienced daily in teaching hospitals nationwide.
Many kids are on cancer death row. Some are dead and more may yet die, unless something is done to stop the trend.
The late Joseph and Chioma Ukanwa were two cancer patients, who could not make it.
They battled for their lives, all to no avail.
First, it was Ukanwa who died in June last year. Joseph passed away last Tuesday on his sick bed in LUTH, after being bedridden with cancer of the bone, known in medicine as osteosarcoma, for over a year.
The list of children who could not live through cancer is endless.
This, experts said, is a precarious situation parents are grappling with.
Although oncologists often say cancer is not a death sentence the number of children who are dying from the disease is alarming.
Master Olorunlagbara’s father said it was not easy paying his son’s hospital bills. “I sold everything I had to pay for his bills yet the money was not enough. People, church members and friends also gave their widow’s mite. Yet, he still died,” he said.
Pastor Olorunlagbara said since his son was hospitalised, he had not done any other thing than to stay in the hospital. “The only time I am not there is when I go to look for money,” he said.
His mother too, he said, could not do anything meaningful as she had to be around the boy.
According to him, it costs a fortune to treat cancer in Nigeria. “People sometimes sell their houses, among other property, to pay for treatment. I have spent my life savings for my son to access care. Yet, the financial commitment is endless,” he said.
The parents of Miss Ukanwa were also always present at her bed side. They said their daughter’s disease sapped their income.
Her father, Mr Charles Ukanwa, said a lot of money was spent, adding that they are always in need because of the financial demand the disease placed on them.
Her mother, an auxiliary nurse, waited on her since she took ill. She could not work.
Master Timothy Olaonipekun is battling with leukemia, cancer of the blood.
Last year, some patients, especially children, died because of their inability to raise money for treatment.
A businessman, Mr Charles Ukanwa, lost his nine-year-old daughter, Chioma, to leukaemia, as he could not fund the treatment.
His daughter missed her treatment a couple of times.
Also, a trader, Mrs Ann Ekpo, almost lost her 19-month-old baby Esther, to the disease but for the timely intervention of well-meaning Nigerians who supported her.
Mr Muyiwa Olaonipekun, a civil servant, is still struggling to pay for the treatment of his son, Timothy.
The boy may have died but for the expertise of doctors at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH).
Olaonipekun said his son would have 120 weeks of chemotherapy, adding that he is on 63rd at the moment.
He enjoined the government to assist children living with cancer financially to cushion the effect on their parents. “A bed in the hospital costs N5000 daily. This does not include drugs and tests. Daily, I spend about N16000 on my son treatment. Thanks to my old school mates for their kindness towards preserving my son’s life,” he said.
Head of Department, Paediatrics, LUTH, Prof Adebola Akinsulie said government cannot do it alone.
He called on well-meaning people, companies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to lend a hand.
Akinsulie said cancer could be devastating when a patient is made to pay out-of-pocket, adding: “Every Nigerian could be asked to donate N100 to support cancer treatment. This would translate to over N1 billion.”
More children, he said, are coming down with cancer these days unlike in the past that it is common among adults.
Advising children, he said, they should tell their parents anytime they notice changes in their body.
Akinsulie said an estimated five children visited the hospital as cancer patients weekly.
Over the years, a paediatrician, Prof Edamisan Temiye has been clamouring for Federal Government’s intervention in cancer management.
He said cancer should be included in the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) or subsidy by the Federal Government because of the high cost of treatment.
LUTH Consultant Radiotherapist and Oncologist, Prof Remi Ajekigbe advised that people should check for cancer regularly for early detection, stressing that prompt medical attention would make treatment much easier.
“With early detection, the possibility of patients being cured of cancer is very high,” he said.
The oncologist said no fewer than 100,000 new cancer cases are recorded every year, adding: “About two million people are living with the disease.”
According to him, cancer in children can be cured if presented early.
The country, he said, should have cancer centres in all parts of the country, saying it only has three at the moment, to manage the disease.
He said: “If the country can have at least one machine in each geo-political zone, it will ameliorate the cancer problem.”
The machines, he said, are expensive but the country could procure some to increase access.
“Government needs to subsidise the cost of treatment or include the disease in the NHIS. It is very expensive to manage it through out-of-pocket payment,” he added.
He identified junk foods and sedentary lifestyle as factors that predispose people to the disease.
The World Health Organisation (WHO), which observed that more than 70 per cent of cancer deaths occur in low and middle income countries, is urging the government to subsidise treatment cost.
The WHO noted that the risk of coming down with or dying of cancer is higher in the developed world.
The Managing Director, Children Living With Cancer Foundation (CLWCF), Dr Nneka Nwobi, said many children are plagued with cancer without knowing what to do.
“They keep the problem to themselves until it is fully blown. So, more awareness was needed to reduce paediatric cancer in Nigeria,” she said.
