Over 29,000 Kenyans die from cancer as patients decry low SHA funding - KENCO

Appearing before the National Assembly health committee, KENCO Executive Director Phoebe Ongadi revealed that 44,700 new cases were reported, citing that the figures could be higher. 

“Locally, we need to strengthen the national registry to collect data because I believe the Globocan data could be lower than what we have on the ground so we also need to push for the national cancer registry to retrieve the correct data for us to come up with ideas and strategies that help us deal with the cancer,” she said.

The advocacy group also lamented the meagre funds set aside in the Social Health Authority for cancer patients, with over 60 per cent of patients depleting their benefits package before the end of the year.

The officials told MPs that the transition from the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) to SHA had introduced new hurdles for patients seeking chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and follow-up treatments.

“SHA has increased emotional distress more than the disease itself. Cancer itself is emotionally draining, but the SHA system has made the situation worse,” Ongadi noted.

“Patients live in constant fear, wondering whether their treatment will be approved, when their financial year begins, or when they’ll be told to pay out of pocket. These uncertainties are causing more emotional turmoil than the disease itself," she added. 

The MPs were told how thousands are being forced to abandon cancer treatment because of the high cost of treatment with SHA benefit package having been depleted.

According to the data from KENCO, 60 per cent of cancer patients exhaust their SHA cover before the end of the year, 35 per cent exhaust their benefits in less than 3 months, and 13 per cent are forced to abandon treatment completely.

The financial burden of treating cancer in Kenya has reached alarming levels, with KENCO estimating that families spend an average of Ksh.3.8 million a year to keep loved ones alive.

The Patients and Caregivers umbrella body said that the cost of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, and follow-up medication has turned cancer into both a medical and financial nightmare.

According to Kenco’s submissions to MPs, a woman diagnosed with triple-positive breast cancer and accessing services from a public health center ends up paying in excess of Ksh.3.8 million.