• Effective management of cancer requires that all these modalities of treatment be available, accessible and affordable, which is not the case.
• The Ministry of Health estimates that over 80 per cent of the 39,000 annual new cancer patients are candidates for palliative care.
Image: GILBERT KOECH
A cancer palliative care display garden has been unveiled at the National Museums of Kenya.
The Sh14 million garden funded by the National Research Fund was established in 2021 as an outcome of the project aimed at assessing indigenous cancer palliative care approaches for improved quality of life and enhancing the conservation of medicinal plants.
The half acre garden in NMK's botanical garden was opened on August 31 during the marking of African Traditional Medicine Day. It has 25 tree species.
The day is celebrated every August 31, since 2003 to recognise the vital role traditional medicine play.
The priority list of tree species in the garden was developed and validated by 194 traditional health providers, who give palliative care.
Project principal investigator Dr Solomon Cheboi said the project was to determine patient/carers treatment-seeking behaviour, appropriateness of treatment(s) received and client satisfaction perspectives.
The project interviewed 443 patients and the data generated two papers.
The results showed the use of indigenous palliative care is predominant for major cancer conditions and is driven by success stories, the quest for a cure, trustworthiness and beliefs, previous experience and avoiding medical procedures, such as surgery.
Cheboi said good patient-provider interaction, provider social skills and service waiting time influence patient satisfaction with indigenous palliative care.
“The finding contributes to the understanding of indigenous palliative cancer care and provides scientific evidence for providers and policymakers to redesign and improve their service and outlet setting to provide patient-centred holistic palliative care,” he said.
Some 400 traditional health providers were mapped and 193 herbalists agreed to participate in the study.
Thirty research assistants were recruited, trained on research ethics and project protocol, and dispatched to the field to undertake client exit surveys from October 1-4, 2018.
Caregiver interviews and exit interviews were conducted from October 21 to November 30, 2018.
Some 443 patients were interviewed.
Cheboi said the results of the study indicated provider competence, features of indigenous palliative care and provide understanding of care.
The study showed the average cost per session and summative cost for indigenous palliative care were Sh3,561 and Sh29,066, respectively.
The study also collected plant materials from different ecological sites in Western (Kakamega), Rift Valley (Baringo) and Central (Murang'a, Embu, Nyeri Nyandarua).
National Research Fund acting deputy director of research Grants Dr Eliud Musotsi said funding research in traditional medicine is crucial.
He said the money going to research was 0.04 per cent but should be two per cent of GDP.
Kenya is faced with enormous burden of cancer.
It is ranked the third most common disease with a mortality of seven per cent per annum and is expected to double by 2025.
At least 39,000 new cases are diagnosed, while 27,000 persons die of cancer each year.
Cases of breast and prostate cancer are increasing at an alarming rate.
For example, prostate cancer cases in Kenya tripled between 1990 and 2013, from 546 to 2,127. In the same period, breast cancer cases among women increased from 1,881 to 4,499.
The prevalence of breast and cervical cancers is at 34 per 100,000 and 25 per 100,000, respectively.
For men, the rate of prostate and oesophageal cancers are 17 per 100,000 and nine per 100,000, respectively.
Death from prostate cancer increased by 108 per cent, compared to a 50 per cent increase for stomach cancer.
Deaths from pancreatic cancer in women jumped by 111 per cent, while the number of deaths from stomach cancer decreased by 11 per cent.
The burden is expected to grow due to lifestyle behaviours and climate change.
Presently, cancer treatment, prevention and control are laced with a myriad of challenges. Treatment is done through surgical, radiation and chemotherapy.
Effective management of cancer requires that all these modalities of treatment be available, accessible and affordable, which is not the case.
The Ministry of Health estimates that more than 80 per cent of the 39,000 annual new cancer patients are candidates for palliative care.