Prostate Cancer: The Silent Killer Among Kenyan men

Did you know that prostate cancer has accounted for the highest number of cancer deaths among Kenyan men? Well, if in case you didn’t know, this is the sad truth.

According to findings by the Kenya Association of Urological Surgeons (KAUS), prostate cancer is second to esophageal cancer, which is the leading cancerous disease overall, that is among both men and women.

Globally, over 10 percent of men who are diagnosed with cancer, 7 percent of them are diagnosed with prostate cancer, 15 percent are diagnosed in developed countries while “4 percent” is in less developed countries.

6-10 percent of the deaths caused by Cancer are caused by Prostate Cancer while in Nairobi Hospital 193 cases of Prostate Cancer were registered in one year alone.

Most cancer specialists argue that since men in less developed countries don’t go for cancer screenings, there is still a less number put on diagnosis and this has led to them realizing when the situation has worsened.

Professor Nicholas Abinya, likens prostate cancer to ‘koko’-a Luo term for crab, which was used to scare kids whenever the parents wanted to convince them to do something they did not want to do.

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“Practitioners make it hard for early treatment due to shaky knowledge,” Professor Abinya said, during the launching event dubbed, ‘bridging the gap in metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer’, held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Nairobi on the night of 18th July 2019.

“Most men in Kenya have not taken a keen interest in cancer screening yet it is there killing them slowly or in silence and they go to cancer centers when situations have worsened. Koko is thought forgotten, so is prostate cancer,” Prof. Abinya added.

The cancer rates are higher in Europe and North America countries but it is highest amongst men with African descent in North America and the Caribbean. Prostate Cancer is more aggressive and prevalent among blacks and native Africans.

Present at the event was Doctor Idir Ouzaid, from France, who suggested that to fight cancer, awareness needs to be widespread.

Lilian Muga, Axios International representative, gave a status update on prostate cancer access program that is meant to assist patients to undergo their diagnoses at a relatively affordable fee.

On recommendations, Dr. Abinya said prospective cancer registry should be established in major institutions that are dealing with cancer treatment.

The event was sponsored by Janssen Oncology, a pharmaceutical company of Johnson and Johnson.

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