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ABUJA, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) – A total of 41,000 Nigerians have been killed from cancer in 2018, out of an estimated 166,000 registered cases in the country, said Monday the World Health Organization (WHO ).
Clement Peter, the head of the WHO health emergency team in Nigeria, unveiled this information at a seminar organized in commemoration of "World Cancer Day 2019", celebrated every year on February 4th.
The theme of this year's World Cancer Day is "I am and I will do it".
"According to our data, in 2018, we recorded about 166,000 cancer-related cancer cases in Nigeria and 41,000 deaths," Peter said at a seminar gathering Nigerian officials, doctors and some patients with cancer.
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth that can invade or spread to other parts of the body. There are more than 100 types of cancer.
The main drivers of Nigeria and most African countries are smoking, alcohol, sedentary lifestyle, pollution and unhealthy eating, experts say.
Nigeria could continue to experience a rising plague if the government, local communities and individuals do not take strict measures to tackle the main factors of the disease, said Peter.
Globally, 14 million new cases and 8.2 million deaths were recorded in 2012, while 18.1 million new cases and 9.6 million deaths were recorded in 2018, according to reports. WHO data.
With this trend, the cancer burden in Africa is expected to double, from 1,055,172 new cases in 2018 to 2,123,245 cancer cases by 2040, said the WHO.
In Nigeria, the most common types of cancer are bad cancer, cervical cancer and prostate cancer. In addition to the above, there are blood cancers such as multiple myeloma and leukemia.
Peter has identified late and erroneous diagnosis, lack of medical coverage and poverty among the main challenges for cancer patients in Nigeria and most African countries.
The disease could be prevented, he noted, and the burden reduced, through healthy lifestyle habits, such as a healthy and appropriate diet, proper exercises, and routine medical check-ups at all times.
"Unfortunately, most cancer patients in Africa are diagnosed at an advanced stage and the prognosis for a positive result is diminished even in cases where treatment is available and affordable," he said.
Thomas Anyanwu, an oncologist from Nigeria's economic center, Lagos, told Xinhua that Nigeria needed to do more to improve its poor equipment to fight cancer. scanners, positron emission tomography (PET), bone scanners and even high quality computer tomography (CT) scanners.
"The cancer is scary and requires proper attention in Nigeria.It is usually a death sentence in the country, and everyone can be affected," Anyanwu said.
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