Over 3,000 Ugandans develop cancer every year - Doctor

Artha Mercy Nabbaale was five years old when she was diagnosed with kidney cancer. It is now seven years since she completed cancer treatment at the Kampala-based Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI).

Her mother, Ms Sarah Tebasoboke, recalls that before the cancer diagnosis, Nabbaale started experiencing persistent coughs and then she lost weight.

“She also used to complain about back pain and she was weak. When she lost weight, it was a concern to us as parents,” Ms Tebasoboke narrates.

“When the doctor examined her, the doctor realised there was a boil and the (the doctor) recommended cancer screening. It took us about a month to get the diagnosis for the exact disease,” adds the resident of Seeta in Mukono District.

According to information from the United Kingdom’s National Health Service, cough was first linked with kidney cancer by researchers in 1935, and this may be experienced by 31 percent of patients. The cough has been reported to resolve once the kidney tumour is treated.

Dr Fadhil Geriga, a paediatric cancer specialist at UCI, says like other forms of childhood cancers, it can be hard to pinpoint the symptoms of kidney cancer.

“It is only when the parent is bathing the child that they will discover some swelling in the abdomen. It is until the child starts losing weight that the parent will become concerned and they discover the swelling,” he says.

According to information from the American Cancer Society, the other signs and symptoms of kidney cancer may include “blood in the urine (hematuria), low back pain on one side (not caused by injury), a mass (lump) on the side or lower back, fever that is not caused by an infection and that doesn’t go away, fatigue (feeling very tired), and loss of appetite.”

Ms Tebasoboke says before they brought Nabbaale to UCI, they used to take her to Doctor’s Plaza Nsambya.

“We were referred to [a specialised] laboratory [in Kampala] for tests. When the result turned out positive for cancer, we were referred to Uganda Cancer Institute,” she narrates.

She continues: “She was sick. By then, I was pregnant. My elder sister, who was in Gulu for internship, came home [to support me]. As parents, it was traumatising. It was hard. Martha used to feel pain whenever she went to the hospital as they gave her chemotherapy. With time, her hair went off, she lost weight.”

“But the doctors were there. They used to give us medicines and drugs were there at the Cancer Institute. She went to Naguru Hospital where the operation for the kidney was done, and then we went back to Cancer Institute for radiotherapy. We have not yet been released, we still go back for review,” she adds.

Nabbaale, who has since returned to school, fell sick when she was in the middle class of her pre-primary education.

She believes good treatment from UCI, China-Uganda Friendship Hospital Naguru, and the prayers enabled her to be healed from cancer.

Moses Echodu, another childhood cancer survivor, says he was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma, a rare but fast-growing cancer. The overall four-year survival rate for this cancer in Uganda is only 44 percent, according to research reports.

Echodu, who is now serving as the executive director of Uganda Child Cancer Foundation, was, however, lucky to survive the disease after being treated with an experimental drug at Uganda Cancer Ward in Mulago Hospital in 1999.

Echodu says he started experiencing the symptoms one evening after a football match with his friends. He adds: “I was limping and I thought it was just fatigue. But the next morning, I still had the lymph. When I told my grandmother, she started treating malaria but there was no change. So my mother was contacted and she brought me on the bus to St. Francis Hospital Nsambya and the doctor told me I had rotten vertebrae.”

Echodu was operated on and spent two weeks in excruciating pain at the hospital. Midway, he got paralysed.

“They had to put a tube in me to draw the pus in me and after that, I went into paralysis. I tried to get up and I failed. My mother was in tears,” he adds.

Nsambya Hospital referred him to the Uganda Cancer Ward in Mulago Hospital when his condition worsened.

“Here, they carried out a test and discovered that I had Burkitt lymphoma. At the hospital, lucky enough, they were in the final stage of the clinical trial for a drug. So my mother accepted that they test the drug on me. The treatment was successful,” he reveals.

Childhood cancer causes
Dr Geriga says nobody knows the exact causes of cancers in children.

“That is why you will never hear about screening for children’s cancers because we only screen what we have a clue about,” Dr Geriga says.

According to information from the World Health Organisation (WHO), only 30 percent of children and adolescents with cancer in Uganda present to cancer treatment centres annually.

Statistics from the UCI indicate that the number of children presenting at the facility for care is rising, with 700 new cases recorded in 2022.

“When I see the number of my patients increasing, I am actually very happy that awareness has reached the communities and people are recognising there is a problem that should be solved,” Dr. Geriga says.

Dr Geriga says it is estimated that around 3,000 develop cancer every year in Uganda.

According to information from the American Cancer Society (ACS), some children inherit Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) changes (mutations) from a parent that increase their risk of certain types of cancer.

“Some studies have also suggested that some parental exposures (such as smoking) might increase a child’s risk of certain cancers, but more studies are needed to explore these possible links. So far, most childhood cancers have not been shown to have environmental causes,” the ACS adds.

Cancer in children
Details from UCI and a research report show that up to 30 percent of children with cancer abandon treatment after initiation, a vice that increases treatment failure and reduces the chance of survival.

The cancer survival rate in children is around fifty percent, which is higher than that of adults but still below the eighty percent survival rate in developed countries.

Echodu of UCCF says there is a strong need for the public to join the government in stepping up support to children with cancer, especially those whose parents may decide to stop bringing them for care because of financial reasons.

According to details from UCI, cancer continues to rise as a significant health challenge in Uganda, with the annual number of new cases diagnosed increasing from 27,000 to 40,000. This is for both children and adults.

The most prevalent in the country include cervical cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer, with these cancers also contributing to the highest mortality rates.

In 2024, Uganda recorded 21,000 cancer-related deaths, reflecting the urgent need for more accessible, affordable, and timely cancer care across the nation.

Prof. Rhoda Wanyenze, the dean of Makerere University School of Public Health (MakSPH), says there is a need to step up focus on cancer research as the disease’s annual incidence rises.

Cancer Screening Challenge
As the country commemorates World Cancer Day 2025 today, UCI, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and key civil society partners, has embarked on a series of activities to increase cancer detection and care in the country.

This year’s global theme, ‘United by Unique,’ highlights the need for international collaboration to combat cancer, while Uganda’s national theme, “United in Goals, Unique in Our Needs,” emphasises the country’s tailored approach to tackling its specific cancer-related needs.

In the lead-up to World Cancer Day, a series of week-long activities have been held throughout Mbarara District to promote cancer awareness. The free screenings are being conducted at Bwizibwera Health Centre IV, Mbarara.

The cancer burden in the western part of the country stands at 1,400 new cancer patients a year.

The cancer burden in the western part of the country stands at 1,400 new cancer patients a year.

Causes of cancer
Cancer can be caused by various factors, including infections, lifestyle choices, and environmental exposure.

1. Infection-related cancers such as cancer of the cervix, liver, and stomach can develop due to infections.
2. Alcohol consumption has been linked to cancers of the breast, colorectal, liver, and upper digestive tract.
3. Tobacco use increases the risk of cancers of the lungs, cervix, stomach, liver, kidney, mouth, and throat.
4. A polluted environment can contribute to cancers of the lung, breast, liver, and pancreas.
5. An unhealthy diet is associated with cancers of the colon, breast, kidney, esophagus, gallbladder, and the lining of the uterus.
6. A sedentary lifestyle can lead to cancers of the breast, kidney, colon (intestine), bladder, esophagus (throat), lung, and stomach.
7. Skin bleaching has been identified as a cause of skin cancer.

Understanding these risk factors is essential for prevention and promoting healthier lifestyles.