KAMPALA – The Rubanda District Woman MP, Hon. Ninsiima Evelyne Kikafunda, has called on the government to prioritize the establishment of a specialized cancer treatment facility in the Kigezi sub-region, citing an alarming rise in cases.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The Rubanda District lawmaker raised the matter on the floor of Parliament on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, during a plenary session presided over by the Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Thomas Tayebwa.
The MPs call comes against a documented high cancer burden in the region, with a Uganda Cancer Institute-funded study ranking Kabale among Uganda’s five highest-burden districts for cancer.
Drawing on official findings from the Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI), Hon. Kikafunda disclosed that the Kigezi sub-region registers roughly 1,200 new cancer cases every year.
She revealed that Rubanda, Kabale, Rukungiri, Kanungu, Kisoro, and Rukiga record about 130, 220, 190, 170, 150, and 100 cancer cases respectively, against Kigezi’s total population of about 1.7 million, according to the 2024 census.
Hon. Kikafunda highlighted the immense burden on patients and families forced to travel to Kampala or abroad, stressing that a regional facility would ease that strain and ensure timely critical care.
“We cannot continue watching our people suffer. Kigezi records about 1,200 new cancer cases every year. Our patients endure costly, exhausting trips to Kampala or abroad for treatment. I call on the government to prioritize a specialized cancer facility right here in our sub-region, to ease this burden and save lives,” Hon. Kikafunda urged.
A new population-based survey conducted across ten sub-regions of Uganda reveals that over 25,500 new cancer cases were recorded between 2017 and 2020, with females accounting for 56% of the total burden.
Cervical cancer and breast cancer remain the leading malignancies among Ugandan women, while prostate and esophageal cancers top the list for men, alongside Kaposi’s sarcoma and liver cancer.
The highest cancer burden was concentrated in Kampala, Gulu, and Kabale, where crude incidence rates exceeded 68 cases per 100,000 people, pointing to urgent service needs.
Researchers urge the establishment of more regional cancer registries and treatment centers to accurately track the disease and guide targeted control efforts across all sub-regions.
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