Cancer Survivors Quest (CSQ) says Malawi can achieve more in the fight against cancer only if those involved change their way of doing things.
Director and Founder of CSQ Chikhulupiliro Ng’ombe, has said this as Countries across the world are observing the cervical cancer Awareness which falls in January as set by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Speaking in interview with radio Islam, Ng’ombe stressed that lack of collaboration and inability to share responsibilities, are some of the major challenges affecting the health sector therefore affecting the fight against cancer.
Fighting against cancer has been hard because the stakeholders work in Isolation, and also we don’t share responsibilities. let’s say government for example, its responsibility is to construct hospitals and ensure availability of drugs, but we cannot expect the same government to provide transport for people to go for checkups, so we need to understand that this not a one man fight, we need collaboration to create more awareness and fight”. He explained.
Ng’ombe said achieving the World Health Organization (WHO)’s target of 90-70-90 by 2023 can be possible, if the country starts implementing what it says, provide adequate resources towards its initiatives and ensure inclusiveness of all stakeholders in as far as fighting cancer is concerned.
“The 90-70-90 target is hard for Malawi to achieve. we have a lot of areas untapped in as far as our system is concerned. I am not saying we cannot achieve it, we can, but this should be taken as a starting point, then we can be able to do it”. Ng’ombe added.
According to the World Health Organization, almost 660, 000 women are affected by cervical cancer, causing 350 000 deaths every year, worldwide.
The WHO set January as a world cervical cancer Awareness month and pleads with the countries to ensure that; 90% of girls under the age of 15 are vaccinated, 70% of women (between the ages of 35 and 45) are screened,and 90% of women treated of cervical cancer or pre-cancer, by 2030.
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