Nigeria and China are keen to deepen cooperation in cancer care, with the federal government seeking technical support, joint research, technology transfer and expanded radiotherapy capacity to improve cancer treatment outcomes in the country.
The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, revealed this on Saturday at the Global Link Summit on Innovation and Practice in Oncology at the China National Convention Centre, Beijing, China.
Salako said Nigeria’s participation in the summit was aimed at not only observing advances in oncology but also shaping global innovation in cancer and bringing relevant technologies and expertise to the country.
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He said Nigeria would inaugurate the China-Africa Hospital Alliance Radiotherapy Working Group and Link Global Oncology Alliance, in which Nigeria is a founding African partner, in addition to signing a strategic cooperation agreement with LinaTech, a Chinese company specializing in radiotherapy technologies and integrated solutions.
“Nigeria has not come to Beijing just to observe innovation in oncology. We have come to help shape it and bring it home,” Salako said.
He said cancer had become a national priority for Nigeria due to the increasing burden of cancer in the country, late presentation, gaps in diagnosis and treatment and financial hardship imposed on families.
According to him, Nigeria recorded approximately 127,763 new cancer cases and 79,542 cancer deaths in 2022, with breast, prostate and cervical cancers accounting for more than 40 percent of mortality.
Salako said the country’s limited radiotherapy infrastructure remained unacceptable, noting that Nigeria, with a population of more than 220 million, had for years operated a radiotherapy fleet that could be “counted on two hands”.
However, he said the mortality-incidence ratio had improved from 62.3 percent in 2022 to 59.6 percent in 2024, describing the development as modest progress that had strengthened the government’s resolve to accelerate cancer prevention, early detection and access to quality treatment.
The minister said the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had, since May 2023, intensified its efforts in cancer prevention, public awareness, treatment infrastructure, funding and research under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
He cited the introduction of the human papillomavirus vaccine into routine immunization in October 2023, and said more than 14 million girls aged nine to 14 had since been reached, making it the largest round of HPV vaccination in Africa.
He also highlighted the National Initiative for Early Detection, Screening and Coordinated Access to Cancer Care Network, NICE-SCAN, which he said was bringing cancer screening, early detection and referral closer to communities and health centres.
Salako said the government was also stepping up efforts to eliminate cervical cancer through community screening activities led by the Cervical Cancer Elimination Task Force and other initiatives.
Regarding cancer treatment and financial protection, he said programs such as the National Cancer Access Program, the Catastrophic Health Insurance Scheme, the National Cancer Health Fund and the Social Determinants of Cancer Care Fund were expanding access to essential cancer medicines and treatments.
He said the initiatives were also designed to improve affordability and reduce financial uncertainty for cancer patients and their families.
According to Salako, the government has strengthened the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment, which has trained some 140 early-career cancer scientists and funded 24 research grants.
He said six cancer centers of excellence are also being developed, three of which are already completed and operational in Katsina, Enugu and Benin, equipped with modern linear accelerators.
The remaining three centres, he said, were moving towards completion with targeted funding through the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Instruments.
Salako further revealed that President Tinubu had approved the procurement and installation of 35 additional linear accelerators between 2026 and 2028 to expand access to radiotherapy for cancer patients.
He said the initiatives were part of Nigeria’s National Cancer Control Plan 2026-2030, whose Technical Working Group and Global Advisory Council are now operational.
According to him, the plan focuses on prevention, decentralized diagnosis and treatment of cancer, protection against financial risks, development of an oncology workforce, clinical trials and strengthening the national cancer registry ecosystem.
He said the government also wanted to build local capacity to install, service and eventually produce anti-cancer technologies in Nigeria, moving the country from being primarily a consumer of anti-cancer technologies to becoming a contributor to global cancer care.
Salako described Nigeria’s emerging partnership with China as critical to achieving the goals.
He said the Memorandum of Understanding between both countries would provide technical support in radiotherapy, joint research and development, academic exchanges and support for the establishment of professional bodies to regulate the practice of radiotherapy.
The minister said Nigeria expected the partnership to produce a joint work plan with designated focal persons and quarterly milestones to ensure that the agreement translated into measurable results beyond its signing.
He also called for twinning of Nigeria’s cancer centers of excellence, the National Institute of Cancer Research and Treatment and tertiary hospitals such as the National Hospital Abuja, with leading Chinese cancer hospitals.
Salako highlighted the need for local training, maintenance and technical support along with the installation of radiotherapy equipment.
“Machines without people are monuments,” he said, emphasizing that every linear accelerator installed in Nigeria must be supported by service and spare parts agreements in the country.
He said the China-Africa Hospital Alliance Radiotherapy Task Force should facilitate the establishment of a designated clinical training base in Nigeria, which could serve as a West African hub for advanced radiotherapy training.
He also proposed a line of scholarships in China for Nigerian radiation oncologists, medical physicists, radiation therapy technologists and biomedical engineers.
Looking ahead to 2030, Salako said Nigeria wanted the partnership to provide technology transfer, local assembly and servicing of radiotherapy and imaging equipment, supported by the country’s zero tax and zero VAT incentives for the manufacturing of health products.
He said both countries could also conduct joint clinical trials and registry-linked research focused on cancer phenotypes affecting African populations, as well as deploy artificial intelligence-assisted treatment planning, adaptive radiotherapy and tele-oncology links between Chinese and Nigerian cancer centres.
The minister emphasized that all technologies introduced in Nigeria should come with proper training and maintenance arrangements.
“Distinguished guests, innovation in oncology only makes sense when it reaches the patient. May this summit be remembered not for what was shown, but for what was achieved. Nigeria is ready, our plan has a cost, our partners are welcome and patients are waiting,” Salako said.
He said the summit provided an opportunity for governments, clinicians, researchers, industry, development partners and patient advocates to translate evidence and innovation into practical interventions capable of improving cancer outcomes.
He said Nigeria’s ambition was to prevent more cancers, detect the disease earlier, expand access to quality treatment, reduce financial hardship and ultimately save more lives..
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