133 Kenyans Diagnosed with Cancer Every Day

A new report tabled in the National Assembly this week shows that at least 133 Kenyans are diagnosed with cancer every day.

This means that the country records 3,990 new cases of cancer every month and 47,887 new cases annually, an increase from 41,000 cases recorded in the year 2012.

The report indicates that breast and cervical cancer are the leading cancers in the country with 498 new cases of breast cancer being recorded every month (5,985 annually) while 437 new cervical cancer cases are recorded monthly (5,250 every year).

Esophagus cancer is third with 4,380 new cases yearly, followed by prostate (2,864) and 2,316 new cases of colorectal cancer.

The report tabled by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) further shows that the number of cancer-related deaths has increased to 32,987 up from 28,500 deaths in 2012. This translates to 1,099 deaths monthly or 36 deaths each day.

“Cancer is estimated to be the third leading cause of death in Kenya after infectious diseases and cardiovascular diseases. Estimates from Globocan 2018 show that there are 47,887 new cancer cases in Kenya every year and 32,987 deaths due to cancer annually,” NCI chief executive officer Alfred Karagu told MPs.

n terms of deaths, esophagus cancer leads with 4,351 deaths per year, followed by cervical (3,286), breast cancer (2,553), prostate cancer (1,663) and colorectal cancer with 1,466 deaths annually.