Nigeria has inaugurated three oncology centres in three states as part of broader healthcare investment and reforms.

In a major step towards strengthening cancer care in Nigeria, the federal government, on Thursday, inaugurated world-class oncology centres in Katsina, Edo, and Enugu states.

While three of the centres located at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Katsina; University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (Nsukka); and University of Benin Teaching Hospital, were inaugurated on Thursday, another three were in the pipeline in Zaria, Jos, and Maiduguri.

The new facilities, equipped with advanced diagnostic and treatment technologies, are part of a broader national effort to expand access to quality cancer treatment, reduce medical tourism, and improve survival rates.

With cancer cases on the rise across the country, the centres are expected to play a critical role in early detection, effective intervention, and patient support services.

In Katsina, the facility was inaugurated at the Federal Teaching Hospital to tackle cancer cases in northern Nigeria.

The oncology centre, inaugurated through the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, would focus on the study, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of cancer.

Speaking at the event, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Chief Wale Edun, described the Katsina, Edo, and Enugu oncology centres as major milestones in healthcare and national development.

Edun explained that the state-of-the-art oncology centres marked a significant step forward in the federal government’s effort to build a healthcare system that delivered results for all Nigerians.

He stated that the centres would provide world-class healthcare opportunities for Nigerians, tackle the “japa” syndrome, work with world-class technology, and conduct global research.

Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, said Nigeria accounted for 127,000 cases of cancer, with 80,000 deaths annually, hence the construction and equipping of the oncology centres in the three states to tackle the scourge.

Pate stated that apart from the three oncology centres inaugurated in the states, the federal government remained committed to building additional three cancer treatment centres in other regions of the country.

He stressed that the federal government, in partnership with development partners, would expand and provide 350,000 diagnostic centres across Nigeria for early detection and treatment of the non-communicable disease.

“So that we can detect cancers early and make them much more treatable because if cancers are detected late, even if there is treatment, it may be too late to have the benefits of that treatment,” he added.

The minister stated that 500 clinicians would be trained by the federal government, in addition to the existing ones, to provide cancer treatment to patients in the oncology centres.

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said the inauguration of the oncology centres underscored President Bola Tinubu’s unwavering commitment to addressing Nigeria’s health challenges.

Idris described the Katsina oncology centre as a world-class cancer treatment centre, and urged Nigerians to patronise the centre for diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

The minister assured that the president was doing everything within his capacity to ensure medical industrialisation in Nigeria, at a pace never seen before.

He said the three oncology centres were world-class facilities established by the president to provide accessible and affordable treatment for cancer patients, thereby reducing the need to seek medical care abroad.

Idris stated, “What President Tinubu is doing is not just about improving medicare in Nigeria, but most importantly about positioning the country for medical industrialisation. This is not just bringing in drugs or equipment but creating the enabling environment for these drugs and equipment to be produced here in Nigeria.

“Today, if you go outside for cancer treatment, it’s because that’s your choice and not because there is not an option provided by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”

He commended Pate and Edun for their vision, commitment, and provision of funds that facilitated the establishment of the six world-class cancer centres across the country.

Idris further said that Tinubu had taken bold and courageous decisions, not to hurt Nigerians, but to revamp the country’s economy and address its challenges.

“What we are witnessing today is just one of the several steps that Mr. President is offering to Nigerians so that we can have the prosperity that he promised when he took office at the beginning,” the minister said.

Speaking at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku Ozalla, Enugu, Pate said the federal government remained committed to reversing the age-long challenge of medical tourism in the country by investing massively in healthcare infrastructure.

During the inauguration of the new Linear Accelerator and Oncology Infrastructure upgrade, he pointed out that the upgraded facility, which was implemented and being managed by MedServe, a subsidiary of the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), to ensure operational efficiency, came with a water treatment plant, CT Scan Machine, furniture, among others.

Pate said the upgrade was in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Tinubu administration and his promise to revamp the healthcare system.

He stated that for far too long, Nigeria spent billions of dollars in medical tourism, and added that the lack of access to cancer/Oncology care was the major reason many Nigerians travelled outside of the country.

He said, “But the president is prepared to address that, he understands that accessing quality healthcare is not cheap, and that is why he is investing N2.48 trillion in the 2025 budget, up from N1.62 trillion in 2024, all thanks to the microphysical reforms that he introduced.

“Now, we can invest in critical areas. Investment in health is not consumption but investment.”

The minister said, “The centre will not only serve Enugu but the entire South-east. Our people will not have to travel outside of Nigeria to access cancer care; instead, those abroad will come into the country to access high quality world class cancer care,” he added.

He also used the occasion to address concerns of internship students working with the hospital who had staged a protest earlier over salary cuts.

He said the president cared about the well-being of healthcare workers in the country and would do his best to ensure that they were better taken care of.

Earlier, in a goodwill message in Enugu, Edun said the oncology centre had been elevated to global standard.

He explained that with the economy now stabilised, revenues were increasing and governments, both at the federal and subnational levels, now have more money to spend on critical areas like healthcare.

The minister maintained that the idea of having an oncology centre in Nigeria did not begin today, adding that past administrations overlooked the project.

“But President Tinubu has achieved it in under two years because of his commitment to healthcare delivery,” he said. “What you see today is a delivery of the promise and empathy of the president to all Nigerians. It is a major milestone in national development,” he added.

Edun said, “We have touched virtually all the sectors, working with the private sector and the sub-nationals.

“With the commissioning of the centre, it will now become a matter of choice for Nigerians who go out of the country to seek cancer care.”

Governor Peter Mbah, who was represented by his deputy, Ifeanyi Ossai, urged the management of the hospital to ensure that the facilities were managed.

“You must treat it with the utmost care that it requires to ensure sustainability because that is the only way the government can keep answering when we call,” he said. (AriseNews TV)