Keeping Hope Alive for Children Fighting Cancer in Nigeria

Children’s Day Beyond the Celebration Grounds

ACROSS Nigeria, Children’s Day is often marked with colourful parades, music, games and excitement. Schools organise events, parents buy gifts, and children eagerly anticipate a break from routine.

But inside oncology wards in Abuja and other parts of the country, the mood is strikingly different.

For many children battling cancer, 27th May is not about balloons or festivities. It is another day of chemotherapy, injections, hospital admissions and anxious waiting.

Seven-year-old Lois Adebayo is among the children spending this year’s celebration on a hospital bed rather than a playground. Diagnosed with leukaemia, a cancer affecting the blood and bone marrow, Lois has spent nearly three years moving between treatment sessions, laboratory tests and medical procedures.

Her mother, Mrs. Glory Adebayo, describes her daughter as a “warrior princess,” a title she says reflects the child’s extraordinary resilience through pain and uncertainty.

“The journey has not been easy, but we thank God for bringing us this far,” she said quietly, balancing exhaustion with hope.

For families dealing with childhood cancer, survival becomes a daily struggle shaped not only by medical realities but also by emotional trauma and crushing financial demands.

A Growing but Underreported Crisis

Health experts say childhood cancer remains one of the least understood public health challenges in Nigeria despite its growing impact on families.

According to the World Health Organization, approximately 400,000 children and adolescents between ages zero and 19 develop cancer globally every year.

Common childhood cancers include leukaemia, lymphoma, brain cancers, neuroblastoma and Wilms tumour.

While survival rates in developed countries have improved significantly because of early diagnosis and advanced treatment systems, experts say outcomes in Nigeria remain alarmingly low.

Late detection, poor awareness, inadequate healthcare infrastructure, high treatment costs and limited specialised facilities continue to reduce survival chances for many children.

Medical practitioners say many parents initially mistake cancer symptoms for malaria, infections or nutritional deficiencies. By the time proper diagnosis occurs, the disease may already have advanced significantly.

Dr. Kefas Jibir-Gurama, Head of Paediatrics at the Federal Medical Centre Abuja, said delayed hospital presentation remains one of the biggest obstacles to successful treatment.

“The success of treatment depends largely on the stage at which the cancer is diagnosed,” he explained.

“When children present early, outcomes are generally better. Delayed presentation reduces treatment success and sometimes leaves only palliative care options.”

Bringing Joy into Hospital Wards

Against this difficult backdrop, the Okapi Children Cancer Foundation organised a Children’s Day outreach for young cancer patients receiving treatment at the National Hospital Abuja, Federal Medical Centre Jabi and University of Abuja Teaching Hospital.

The event, held ahead of the official celebration because of the Eid-El-Kabir holidays, temporarily transformed hospital wards into spaces of music, gifts, laughter and companionship.

Volunteers interacted with patients, distributed care packages and organised activities aimed at restoring a sense of normal childhood experience for the children.

According to Ms. Chioma Ikechukwu, Event Coordinator of the foundation, the outreach was designed to remind children battling cancer that they are not forgotten.

“We go beyond funding treatment. We celebrate Christmas with them, Children’s Day and International Childhood Cancer Day.

“We are here to make them feel loved, make them happy and let them know that they still have a lot to live for,” she said.

She stressed that public ignorance about childhood cancer remains widespread in Nigeria.

“Many people do not even know that children can have cancer. By the time they realise it, the disease is often at an advanced stage.

“Cancer is not a death sentence, especially for children when detected early.”

Families Crushed by Financial Burdens

Beyond the physical pain of treatment lies another devastating challenge: cost.

Cancer care in Nigeria remains largely expensive and inaccessible for many households. From chemotherapy to scans, blood products and surgical procedures, families often spend millions of naira during treatment.

For some, survival depends entirely on donations and public support.

Mrs. Adebayo revealed that doctors recently recommended a bone marrow transplant for her daughter, estimated to cost over ₦90 million.

The figure, she admitted, is far beyond what her family can afford.

“We are still fighting. We do not know where the money will come from, but we are hopeful,” she said.

“I want to appeal to well-meaning Nigerians to help us save this child from the pain and suffering she has endured.”

Similar stories echo through oncology wards across the country, where parents routinely sell property, withdraw children from school or accumulate debts in desperate attempts to continue treatment.

Experts Call for Stronger Government Support

Medical specialists say philanthropy and charitable interventions, while helpful, cannot replace systemic government investment in childhood cancer care.

Dr. Wunmi Oyesakin, Chief Consultant Paediatrician and Head of Paediatric Oncology/Infectious Diseases Unit at the National Hospital Abuja, described the support provided by the Okapi foundation over the years as invaluable.

“In the last 10 years, the support from this organisation has been remarkable,” she said.

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, when many activities stopped, they still reached out to these children.”

However, she warned that Nigeria urgently needs improved healthcare infrastructure, specialised treatment centres, subsidised chemotherapy and better diagnostic equipment.

According to her, childhood cancer survival rates in developed countries average about 80 per cent, while Nigeria still struggles below 20 per cent.

“With the right interventions, we can change that narrative,” she said.

Stakeholders also called for wider health insurance coverage, increased investment in oncology services and expanded awareness campaigns to encourage early detection.

Hope Beyond the Hospital Walls

For children like Lois and many others, every smile shared inside hospital wards carries deep significance.

Every donated gift, every supportive word and every act of kindness becomes a reminder that their lives still matter beyond their diagnosis.

As Nigeria celebrates Children’s Day 2026, the stories emerging from cancer wards offer a sobering reflection on the inequalities within the healthcare system and the urgent need for stronger support structures for vulnerable children.

For these young patients, the greatest gift is not a party or celebration.

It is the possibility of survival, healing and the chance to dream again.