By Fatima Saka
The federal government of Nigeria has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment as the Federal Government deepens strategic cooperation with China on radiotherapy, research, technology transfer and oncology capacity development.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, stated this on Saturday, August 15, 2026, at the Link Global Summit on Innovation and Practice in Oncology held at the China National Convention Centre in Beijing, China.
Salako said Nigeria’s participation in the summit was aimed not only at observing innovations in oncology but also at shaping global cancer-care solutions and bringing relevant technologies and expertise back to the country.
He disclosed that Nigeria recorded an estimated 127,763 new cancer cases and 79,542 cancer deaths in 2022, noting that breast, prostate and cervical cancers accounted for more than 40 per cent of cancer mortality in the country.
According to him, the cancer burden, late presentation, diagnostic and treatment gaps, as well as the financial hardship imposed on families, have made cancer a national priority for the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The minister said the Federal Government was already implementing measures to reverse the trend, with Nigeria’s mortality-to-incidence ratio improving from 62.3 per cent in 2022 to 59.6 per cent in 2024.
He highlighted the introduction of the human papillomavirus vaccine into routine immunisation in October 2023, saying more than 14 million girls aged nine to 14 had been reached, making the exercise the largest single round of HPV vaccination in Africa.
Salako also cited the National Initiative for Cancer Early Detection, Screening and Coordinated Access to Network Care (NICE-SCAN), alongside cervical cancer elimination initiatives, as part of efforts to expand community and facility-based screening, early detection and referral.
On cancer treatment and financial protection, he said programmes including the National Cancer Access Programme (NCAP), Catastrophic Health Insurance Scheme, National Cancer Health Fund and Social Determinants of Cancer Care Fund were improving access to essential cancer medicines and services while reducing the financial burden on patients and families.
The minister further disclosed that the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment had trained about 140 early-career cancer scientists and funded 24 research grants.
He said the Federal Government had also established six cancer centres of excellence, with centres in Katsina, Enugu and Benin completed and commissioned with modern linear accelerators, while three others were at various stages of completion.
According to him, President Tinubu had approved the procurement and installation of 35 additional linear accelerators between 2026 and 2028 to expand access to radiotherapy services for cancer patients.
Salako said these initiatives were anchored in the Nigeria National Cancer Control Plan 2026–2030, which prioritises prevention, decentralised diagnostics and treatment, financial risk protection, workforce development, clinical trials and a strengthened cancer registry ecosystem.
He said Nigeria’s partnership with China would be critical to achieving these objectives, particularly through radiotherapy technical support, joint research and development, academic exchange and the strengthening of professional bodies responsible for radiotherapy practice.
The minister called for the twinning of Nigeria’s cancer centres of excellence and tertiary hospitals, including the National Hospital, Abuja, with Chinese cancer hospitals to facilitate knowledge transfer and specialist training.
He stressed that the sustainability of radiotherapy services required more than installing machines, noting that in-country maintenance, technical expertise and reliable spare-parts arrangements were essential to keeping equipment operational.
Salako proposed the establishment of a designated clinical training base in Nigeria to serve as a West African hub for advanced radiotherapy training, alongside fellowship opportunities in China for Nigerian radiation oncologists, medical physicists, radiotherapy technologists and biomedical engineers.
Looking towards 2030, he said Nigeria was seeking technology transfer, local assembly and servicing of radiotherapy and imaging equipment, joint clinical trials, registry-linked research, artificial intelligence-assisted treatment planning, adaptive radiotherapy and tele-oncology partnerships.
He also urged that every technology introduced into Nigeria should come with adequate training and maintenance support.
The minister said the inauguration of the Radiotherapy Working Group of the China-Africa Hospital Alliance and the Link Global Oncology Alliance, in which Nigeria is a founding African partner, as well as the signing of a strategic cooperation agreement with LinaTech, represented important steps towards deepening the partnership.
He said Nigeria was ready to work with China and other international partners to translate oncology innovations into tangible improvements in patient care.
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“Machines without people are monuments,” Salako said, stressing that innovation in oncology would only be meaningful when it reached patients and improved their chances of survival.
He said the Federal Government’s ambition was to prevent more cancers, detect diseases earlier, expand access to quality treatment, reduce financial hardship and save more lives across Nigeria and Africa.
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