Malawi to stop exporting cancer patients as National Cancer Centre opens September 2018
The much awaited Cancer Treatment Centre in Lilongwe opens its doors on September 23, 2018, Ministry of Health (MoH) Principal Secretary (PS), Dan Namarika has disclosed.
He told the Malawi Cancer Consortium conference in Lilongwe that construction work of the centre, to be located at Kamuzu Central Hospital (KCH) was on course towards the September 23, 2018 target.
Namarika pointed out that Government loses a lot of money in forex as it sends cancer patients for further medical treatment in India, saying the cancer centre will reduce the cost and number of patients sent outside for treatment by 50 percent.
The Centre, which will be the first of its kind, is expected to save about MK1 billion that the Ministry of Health spends on patients, particularly on radiotherapy. In the last, government has had to send cancer patients outside the country such as India and South Africa.
“Government is committed that come September 23, 2018, the cancer center will be opened in Malawi, which will save many lives and public funds. The facility will be a centre of excellence on cancer training, research and medical treatment,” assured Namarika.
Under Cancer Consortium with financial and technical support from University of North Carolina (UNC), the facility will be a center of research, training and medical treatment.
The cancer centre is being constructed with a loan from Opec Fund for International Development (Ofid) to the tune of $13 million (about K10 billion). The Malawi Government will also make financial contribution as per Ofid’s loan conditions.
Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :