Women bear the largest burden when it comes to cancer, with breast cancer leading in the list of incidents followed by cervical cancer.
A top cancer consultant, Oncologist Siwilis Mithe said while a few men suffer breast cancer, cervical cancer is entirely a women's disease.
Speaking during the World Cancer Day Celebrations at the Rift Valley Provincial General Hospital on Friday, Mithe urged women to always go for tests while at the same time taking advantage of mass testing.
We have mass testing on many days of the year including today and the whole of October which is a cancer awareness day," she said.
The medic who was accompanied by Nakuru County Executive Committee Member for Health, Kariuki Gichuki among other senior health officials also urged men to go for prostate cancer testing.
"We do not have mass testing for men, but we urge them, especially those above 40 years of age to always go for the sting whenever they have issues in that area," she said.
Mithe said Nakuru was in a position to treat all cancers following the establishment of a cancer center in 2018 and the now complete Radiology center which is yet to be commissioned.
"Rift Valley PGH also offers palliative counseling, nutritional guidance, and psycho-social support for cancer because the disease is tough,' she said.
Gichuki said early diagnosis will help prevent millions of deaths each year by raising awareness and education about cancer.
Chief Officer for Public Health, Daniel Wainaina emphasized the need for prevention by living a healthy lifestyle.
He noted that more than one-third of cancer cases can be prevented.
A cancer patient, Frida Anyango said the availability of cancer treatment facilities in Nakuru had eased the burden of treatment.
She narrated her cancer journey since 2016 when she was diagnosed and the pain of traveling to Kenyatta National Hospital for treatment.
"I suffered greatly and had to spend the night on hospital benches because I did not have money for hotel rooms as I awaited treatment," she said.
Anyango said the cancer was not a death sentence giving a personal experience of living a quality life six years after diagnosis.
