The government will establish four regional cancer centres
in Kisumu, Nyeri, Mombasa and Nakuru counties
in the next two years.
The
project will be carried out with the help of
partners and donors, said Health ministry acting medical services director
Jackson Kioko.
“A cancer centre requires about Sh1.5 billion to set up. Nairobi and Machakos counties will be served by the one at Kenyatta National Hospital,” he said.
Kioko, who is head of preventative and promotive health services, noted that Nairobi and Eastern regions have more incidences of cancer than others.
He urged early screening in his address
at
Dedan Kimathi Kamukunji stadium in Nyeri town on
Thursday, during the commemoration of World Cancer Day.
At least 500 Nyeri residents underwent free cancer screening at the occasion. The county's health executive committee
said the Nyeri government has committed to preventing the disease.
Leah Kirumbi, acting director for the Centre for Clinical Research at the
Kenya Medical Research Institute, said the government is committed to research on non-communicable diseases including cancer.
She said the institute is carrying out a study on whether miraa is the main cause of cancer in Meru.
