• Sun Magazine Epaper
Saturday, May 24, 2025
Sun Magazine Kenya
Advertisement Banner
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle and Entertainment
  • Sports
  • More
    • Education
    • Opinion
    • Videos
    • Pictorial
  • Epaper
    • Issue 2
    • Issue 3
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle and Entertainment
  • Sports
  • More
    • Education
    • Opinion
    • Videos
    • Pictorial
  • Epaper
    • Issue 2
    • Issue 3
Sun Magazine Kenya
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Kenya among three top African countries with high number of cancer cases – report

by Sun Magazine
November 14, 2019
in News
4 min read
6
Kenya among three top African countries with high number of cancer cases – report
6
SHARES
62
VIEWS
Share on TwitterShare on FacebookShareSend

Kenya is one of the three countries in Africa with the highest number of cervical cancer deaths, the Global Vaccine Alliance (Gavi) Board chair Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Lweala has said.

She said more than 311,000 women die of cervical cancer globally every year with 90 per cent of the deaths occurring in middle-income countries.

RelatedStories

Newly elected SUN leaders in Kakamega, Vihiga promise to paint Western Kenya blue

Shofco Sacco launches new office as membership surpasses 15000

“Twenty-five percent of these cases are in Africa which is around 72,000 deaths and the three countries with the highest number of deaths are in Africa namely Zimbabwe, Malawi and Kenya,” she said.

Speaking in Nairobi on Wednesday during a dialogue on the future of the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine programme in Kenya, Okonjo-Lweala said there is a need to focus attention on the vaccine.

“As a colon cancer survivor myself, any type of cancer that has a vaccine and can be prevented, I propose we should go for it. I went through three years of treatment and it is by God’s grace that I am sitting here and so I am a strong advocate for prevention,” she said.

Okonjo-Lweala said the vaccine will not only save the lives of youn women.

She said Gavi was working towards a reduction of costs for vaccines in developing countries.

“For HPV for instance, in a case where it would cost 100 dollars in the US, we can bring it down to about 4.50 dollars and this is what makes it affordable for our countries,” she said.

She said there was need to educatr critics of the vaccine on its objectives.

“It is not about reproductive issues with girls. It is about saving lives. This vaccine has to do with preventing a deaths in future thus we must work together to send that message,” she added.

She however noted that the biggest challenge of the vaccine would be the supply and demand.

“The continental demand of the vaccine could reach 80 million doses and there are only about 35 million available meaning there is a deficit of about 45 million,” she said.

Ngozi encouraged vaccine manufactures to step up production to avoid shortages.

GAVI, the alliance, she said is ready and willing to move on with the vaccine and to support Kenya and all other African countries to deliver on it.

Health Cabinet Secretary, Sicily Kariuki said the country has improved immunization coverage from 52 percent to 82 percent national average as it were two years ago in terms of vaccine coverage within the routine of vaccinations just shortly on the heels of the launch of malaria vaccine two months ago.

“These means that we have found immunization and vaccinating our children to be a worthwhile investment and indeed see it is with our primary health care approach to delivering UHC,” she said

During the run up to introduce the HPV vaccine, the CS noted that although it was not easy to bring all stakeholders together because of various interest groups, they did not hesitate but take everyone’s input even at the 11th hour before the launch

“What brings us here is part of the engagement to say yes on the 18th of last month when the national launch was done and currently we have 41 Counties out of the 47 having launched the facilities,” she said

Kariuki said the other six remaining Counties would by December launch and therefore covering the whole country.

Health Cabinet secretary Sicily Kariuki said some 280,000 girls had received the vaccine in the past one month.

“If we have managed to do 280,000 of the targeted 800,000 girls  in the ages of 10 years within a month, its commendable,” she said.

 “There have been disruptions because schools were closed. Examinations were and are also ongoing and also heavy rains in northern areas with a challenge of roads being impassable, but all of us are on course,” she said

She explained that introduction of the vaccine would not only stop families from sinking out of catastrophic expenditure due to cancer  but also is an investment considering there are close to 30,000 Kenyans dying  every year because of the various cancers  with breast and cervical cancer leading.

The CS said that Kenya being the 115th country in the world to introduce the vaccine is not a mistake and is an issue proven beyond science since the outcome of the pilot phase done had also confirmed there was much advanced effect on the vaccine

Henrietta Geiger, Director, People and Peace of European Commission said prevention is much less costly than treatment and that this fact was enough as a selling argument for vaccine.

“With reduction of price, the roll out can be on a massive scale and I laud Kenyans for taking leadership role in doing it as a pilot initiative and taking risk which has succeeded despite the difficulties they have had,” she said.

Benda Kithaka, chair of Women 4 Cancer said civil society supports the HPV vaccine as one of the interventions that is available to the Kenyan populace and are convinced that the vaccine is a tool towards elimination of cancer.

“By combining screening with HPV vaccine, we will be protecting our girls now and securing their future and as civil society   we still need to talk loudly to convince the dissenting voices and ensure our girls are protected,” she said.

Kithaka said however that their work as civil society was not done and that they would also in the future hold communities and governments accountable in sustainability and systems strengthening as the roll out of the vaccine continues and also in delivery.

WHO Country Representative, Dr. Rudi Eggers said HPV vaccine is one of the preventative measures that are almost magical.

“You give a child two injections and that child is protected at least 15 years and probably for life,” Dr Eggers said.

Wednesday’s dialogue and interactive session came on the heels of the ICPD meeting that is ongoing in Nairobi and is addressing health issues of women and girls.

Kenya successfully launched the HPV vaccine into the routine immunization programme last month to all 10-year-old girls with GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance support.

Tweet2Share2SendShareSend
Previous Post

In pictures: SHOFCO adult learners graduate after sitting Grade 8 exam

Next Post

KCPE 2019 results: Kibera School for Girls posts stellar performance

Next Post
KCPE 2019 results: Kibera School for Girls posts stellar performance

KCPE 2019 results: Kibera School for Girls posts stellar performance

Most Popular Stories

  • Shofco Sacco launches new office as membership surpasses 15000

    Shofco Sacco launches new office as membership surpasses 15000

    34 shares
    Share 59 Tweet 37
  • Top stars who were raised in Kibera

    103 shares
    Share 45 Tweet 24
  • SHOFCO Urban Network sets foot in Mukuru grounds

    31 shares
    Share 12 Tweet 8
  • Inside Shofco Urban Network, the slums’ life-changing program

    36 shares
    Share 14 Tweet 9
  • How SUN has helped slum communities ease funeral burden

    21 shares
    Share 8 Tweet 5
  • Hustle: My yellow tuk tuk

    90 shares
    Share 36 Tweet 23

Youtube Channel

Currently Playing

About Us

The Sun Magazine is a publication of SHOFCO that briefs you with stories from within and outside the ghetto.

Follow Us

Top Stories

Newly elected SUN leaders in Kakamega, Vihiga promise to paint Western Kenya blue

Newly elected SUN leaders in Kakamega, Vihiga promise to paint Western Kenya blue

June 23, 2023
Shofco Sacco launches new office as membership surpasses 15000

Shofco Sacco launches new office as membership surpasses 15000

June 23, 2023

Interests

  • Business
  • Education
  • Lifestyle and Entertainment
  • News
  • Opinion
  • Pictorial
  • Sports

© 2019 | Site by Mark & Ryse | Privacy Policy

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle and Entertainment
  • Sports
  • More
    • Education
    • Opinion
    • Videos
    • Pictorial
  • Epaper
    • Issue 2
    • Issue 3

© 2019 | Site by Mark & Ryse | Privacy Policy

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In