World Cancer Day: Survivors, Advocates Demand Better Government Support

• CAPPA urges govt to tackle disease by fixing Nigeria’s food system

Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

Cancer survivors and advocates have called on the Nigerian government to urgently improve access to cancer care, funding, and medical facilities, as they shared powerful testimonies at an event marking World Cancer Day in Abuja.

The call came same day the Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) called on the Nigerian government to address the growing link between cancer and country’s food system.

Speaking at the event, organised by Sambai in partnership with Cormode Cancer Foundation yesterday, Ochai Igba Friday, a blood cancer survivor, recounted his journey after being diagnosed with cancer in 2016 while in India. Nearly a decade later, he said he was a living proof that cancer was no longer a death sentence.

“I went through pain that made it look like I was going to die, but here I am today, strong and healthy,” he said, and emphasised the importance of early detection, faith, and financial support. He noted that cancer treatment was expensive and beyond the reach of many Nigerians.

He credited his survival to divine intervention and the support he received from his former employer, which sponsored his medical treatment abroad.

“If not for that support, only God knows what would have happened to me,” he said, lamenting what he described as the government’s poor response to cancer care.

“The government is not doing well at all. Cancer patients and survivors are suffering,” he said.

Also speaking, CEO and founder of the Cormode Cancer Foundation, Dr. Denis Ejoh, shared her personal battle with cancer, revealing that she has lived with metastatic breast cancer for the past 10 years.

“I live with cancer. I take chemotherapy every day. My breast cancer spread to my brain, and I have had over 15 tumors,” she added.

Ejoh, a cancer patient advocate and author of five books, said her foundation works to change the narrative around cancer in Nigeria, especially among children and young people.

She expressed concern over the lack of government funding for cancer patients, noting that the Cancer Health Fund failed to disburse funds last year.

“Everybody has a right to live. We are begging the government to help us live. Cancer patients cannot afford treatment on their own,” she said.

International cancer advocate and founder of Touch the Black Breast Cancer Alliance, Ricki Fairley, also addressed the gathering, stressing that cancer was not a death sentence if detected early.

“Early detection saves lives. People must become the CEO of their own health. Know your body, know your family history, and get checked when something feels wrong”, Fairley said.

While acknowledging challenges in Nigeria’s healthcare system, she said access to care could be improved through education, advocacy, and collaboration between government, hospitals, and medical professionals.

She further highlighted the importance of survivor-led support groups and NGOs, describing them as critical sources of emotional support and guidance for cancer patients.

“Advocacy and survivor support groups help patients feel understood without having to explain everything,” she said.

The event ended with a renewed call for stronger government engagement, increased funding, early detection programs, and sustained support for NGOs working to improve the lives of cancer patients and survivors across Nigeria.

Meanwhile, CAPPA has called on the Nigerian government to address the growing link between cancer and the country’s food system.

The non-governmental organisation made the call in a statement yesterday to commemorate the 2026 World Cancer Day, with the theme “United by Unique.”

In the statement made available to journalists in Port Harcourt, the public interest organisation reaffirmed its solidarity with the global community to honour the millions affected by cancer.

A statement signed by the Media & Communications Officer, CAPPA, Mr. Robert Egbe, warned that cancer was no longer a distant threat in the country, but a growing epidemic with no fewer than 72,000 annual cancer-related deaths and over 120,000 new cases recorded annually, according to the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment.

Egbe stated that while genetic and environmental factors play a role, increasing evidence links the rise in colorectal, breast, and prostate cancers to the food Nigerians consume and how the food are produced.

The organisation called on the federal and state governments, “to implement proactive measures to curb this public health crisis by fixing the cracks in our food system that are contributing to the rising burden of cancer and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Nigeria.”

These cracks, it added, included unrestricted marketing and consumption of ultra-processed foods, poor regulation of tobacco and emerging nicotine products marketing, and excessive consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and salt, among other major cancer and NCD risk factors.

“We urge the government to place renewed focus on strengthening its healthy food policies. These include stricter regulation of tobacco and nicotine products, an upward review of the tobacco control budget, the development of a national guideline to reduce salt consumption including implementation of mandatory salt targets for processed and pre-packaged foods, a review of the SSB tax from the current N10 per litre to 50 per cent of the final retail price of sugary drinks, restrictions on the marketing of unhealthy foods to children, and clear nutrition standards for schools, hospitals and other public institutions,” CAPPA stated.

Recognising tobacco’s role as one of the biggest preventable cancer risks, the statement called for a full implementation of the National Tobacco Control Act, inclusion of new and emerging nicotine products in the ban on all forms of tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, higher tobacco excise taxes adjusted for inflation, and strict enforcement against illicit tobacco and nicotine products trade.

The organisation also renewed its commendation of the federal government’s plan to earmark pro-health taxes for cancer prevention and care, noting that such measures would help reduce out-of-pocket healthcare spending.

The statement urged governments to make cancer control a development priority, saying the country’s health sector, with only 40,000 doctors for over 200million people, according to media reports, is at a breaking point.

“Nigeria cannot treat its way out of the cancer crisis. Prevention-focused policies, especially those related to tobacco, food, and alcohol, offer perhaps the biggest and most cost-effective gains.

“When combined with early detection, health financing, and accountability, they can save thousands of lives each year,” CAPPA added.