East Africa: In East Africa, a Cancer Diagnosis Means a Death Sentence

At just 20 per cent, Uganda has one of the lowest cancer survival rates in the world, according to statistics from the Ugandan Cancer Institute. But, as the burden of the disease continues to grow in East Africa, experts say that addressing challenges of late diagnosis, a poor understanding of the disease and inadequate health infrastructure, including human resources, should be a key focus for governments.

Dr Peter Eriki from the African Centre for Global Health and Social Transformation in Uganda, said that ageing, social and economic determinants -- including where and how people live, what they eat, urbanisation and industrialisation -- have all contributed to the problem of cancer, and therefore, the approach, should aim at ensuring these risk factors are reduced.

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