Abstract
Africans are the most diverse group of people on the earth, and the continent is presently at the intersection of an epidemiological transition resulting in an increased burden of non-communicable disease, particularly cancer. This population diversity presents the scientific community with a platform to understand how best to solve deadly health problems that plague humanity. Yet, research and funding activities on cancer in sub-Saharan Africa is still nascent. Historically, cancer was first reported in Africa in the Egyptian papyrus of Imhotep (3,000–2,500 B.C), which stated treatment recommendation as “There is none.” At present, infection-related cancers account for over 25% of cancer cases in some countries in the sub-Saharan Africa region. For example, despite being fully vaccine-preventable and curable, this region has the highest incidence of cervical cancer in the world, with concomitant high mortality affecting women at their prime. Aside from infection-related cancer, breast and prostate cancers are the leading cancers for women and men, and these diseases present with an aggressive phenotype in the region. Coupled with the unfavorable biology is the late disease presentation, poor access to care infrastructure across the region, and limited human resources. For instance, apart from South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Kenya, Gabon, Ghana and Cameroon all counties in this region have less than 1 Pathologist per 1 million people, this is coupled with the dearth of radiotherapy facilities in most countries. Furthermore, despite the genetic diversity of the African population, their inclusion in cancer genomics studies and clinical trials is limited. Thus, these social and biological determinants of health have created the ‘perfect storm’ that perpetuates cancer disparity in Sub-Saharan Africa. These unmet needs have also created opportunities for translational research that could contribute to the discovery of new knowledge and identifying new and better treatment for cancers for underrepresented populations. This presentation provides an overview of the determinants of health that have contributed to cancer disparity in Sub-Saharan African and the opportunities they present in achieving global cancer health equity.
Citation Format: Bello Abdubakar Mohammed. Cancer Disparity in Sub-Sahara Africa: Challenges and Opportunities [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Conference: Thirteenth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2020 Oct 2-4. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(12 Suppl):Abstract nr IA36.
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