By Benedict Tembo
UDIE Favour Soko personifies triumph in the midst of disease adversity. And a two-day meeting on health financing held deep personal significance to her.
As a cancer survivor who has experienced the journey of diagnosis, treatment, and remission twice, the meeting could not have come at a better time.
The Ministry of Health and the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC)/ The Access to Oncology Medicines Coalition (ATOM Coalition) held a meeting in Lusaka this week to looks at various facets of cancer.
Ms Soko has experienced the journey of diagnosis, treatment, and remission twice. The founder and chief executive officer of the Zambian Cancer Society was 23, when she was diagnosed with cancer of the lymph nodes and had breast cancer at 50
“I understand firsthand the complexities involved in this battle – not only with the disease itself but also in accessing affordable and quality care, “Ms Soko said.
At the forum where the ATOM Coalition, a global initiative led by the UICC, Ms Soko said all the partners there came with a common goal: to ensure that cancer medicines are accessible affordable and of the highest quality for all Zambians.
Ms Soko shared a glimpse of Sonile Ngwenya’s story.
In 2014, when Sonile was just 16 -years- old, her life began to unravel. She had shortness of breath, hearing, uncontrolled nosebleeds and eventually, she could no longer lift her tongue.
“These symptoms worsened over the years, and in 2018, she was finally diagnosed with nasophryngeal carcinoma. It is a type of cancer that forms in the tissues of the upper part of the throat behind the nose,” she said.
Ms Soko said Sonile could not immediately begin treatment – not because she lacked courage, but because she lacked the funds for a simple Computed tomography, which is commonly referred to as a CT scan.
A CT scan is a diagnostic imaging procedure that uses a combination of X-rays and computer technology to produce images of the inside of the body.
“By the time she had raised enough money for the CT scan and begun treatment, a year had passed and her symptoms had progressively worsened. Yet, she faced chemotherapy. For my fellow survivors and patients, know that our lived experiences matter. They are the heartbeat of this movement – fuelling change and reminding the world of the urgent need for action,” she said.
Ms Soko said there was need to recognise the pivotal role of civil society organisations in the fight against cancer.
“These organisations are often the lifeline for patients, providing financial assistance, advocating for policy change, and driving community-based education that leads to early detection. They remind us that cancer is not just a medical issue but a societal one,” she said.
The two-day Health Financing Workshop which attracted officials from the Ministry of Health, Cancer Diseases Hospital, Ministry of Finance, staff from Zambia Medicines Regulatory Authority, Zambia Medicines and Medical Supplies Agency (ZAMMSA), and civil society organisations also had experts from UICC/ATOM Coalition analysed ways in which Zambia can increase financing for cancer by increasing overall public spending on health and allocate additional resources to cancer care.
Participants resolved that within the existing budget, there is need to increase allocation for cancer and improve the efficiency of health spending on cancer.
Sarbani Chakraborty, a global health policy and partnerships expert with said the ATOM Coalition’s ambition is make available more WHO EML generic and biosimilar cancer medicines over time.
Dr Chakraborty highlighted the need for secure an increasing number of patented medicines and new medicines in the pipeline over time and improve the capacity to receive and use cancer medicines in targeted LMICs, including Zambia.
She said the ATOM Coalition facilitates access between companies and partners through the defined sustainable medicine access pathways.
According to Dr Chakraborty, Zambia is one of the targeted countries UICC/ATOM Coalition to improve care for cancer.
The ATOM Coalition’s engagement with Zambia has been set in motion with the signing of the
Memorandum of Understanding in October last year and the next steps include completion of situation analysis data collection based on stakeholder input and the identification of the initial health financing projects.
The situation analysis action planning workshop is proposed for April 2025 to be followed by prioritization of capacity strengthening projects and ATOM coalition partner identification. Currently, Zambia faces a high cancer burden with 2020 data showing 13,831 cases with an incidence rate of 153.5 per 100,000 while mortality rate is 103.3 per 100,000 (8,672 deaths).
The most prevalent cancer types include cervical (23 percent), Kaposi’s Sarcoma (16 percent), Prostate (11.2 percent), breast (seven percent), and Oesophageal (3.7 percent).
According to the National Cancer Control Strategic Plan (2022–2026), the goal is to reduce cancer mortality by one-third by 2030; with prioritised cancers being cervical, breast, prostate, colorectal, and childhood cancers.
Strengthening governance, data collection, infrastructure, and community engagement and expanding human resources and funding from less than one percent to five percent of the health budget by 2026 is are the key objectives.
Permanent Secretary for Technical Services Kennedy Lishimpi who officiated at the workshop called for implementation of the outputs as opposed to holding regular meetings when patients are waiting.
Dr Lishimpi urged change in attitude by tasked to serve the public and desist from diverting medicines and deliberately delaying procurement to create a crisis to cash in.
“Do not complain that you were not warned, you will be jailed within five months. The minimum sentence is seven years,” he said.
Dr Lishimpi said Government has worked hard to and has improved the availability of essential drugs in public health facilities from 40 percent to 90 percent.
