ONOJA BABA, PAUL UTEBOR
On the ever-busy Umaru Musa Yar’Adua Expressway in Abuja stands a towering monument to Nigeria’s broken promises — the International Cancer Centre (ICC). Conceived in 2008 by Mrs. Turai Yar’Adua, wife of the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, the centre was meant to be a beacon of hope for the poor and a game-changer in cancer diagnosis, treatment, research, and education. Today, nearly 17 years later, it has become a ghost town, its expensive medical equipment and hundreds of vehicles rusting away under the scorching sun, while cancer patients across the country die in their tens of thousands each year.
In the beginning, this dream began after Mrs. Yar’Adua’s visit to the MD Anderson Cancer Centre in Texas, USA. Inspired, she returned home to rally Nigeria’s elite at a high-profile fundraising dinner on July 18, 2009. That night, pledges amounting to ₦6.8 billion were made. The vision was ambitious: a fully private-driven, state-of-the-art facility that would bring world-class cancer care to Nigeria’s capital. The first phase — 200 rooms, four theatres, and administrative offices — was completed. But after President Yar’Adua’s death in 2010, many of the deep-pocketed donors melted away, their pledges vanishing into thin air.
By 2016, Mrs. Yar’Adua’s visits to the site had stopped entirely. Since then, the ICC’s fate has been one of slow decay. At one point, its compound was overrun by weeds. About 200 new mini-buses purchased for operations were abandoned in the open before being moved to a hidden section of the premises. Bandits even invaded the centre in 2022, overpowering the few guards on duty and carting away valuables.
A Call for Concern
Meanwhile, the cancer scourge in Nigeria has only worsened. The National Cancer Control Plan (2018–2022) paints a grim picture: 102,000 new cancer cases and 72,000 deaths annually. The Global Cancer Observatory’s 2018 report recorded 115,950 total cases — with breast cancer (22.7%) and cervical cancer (12.9%) leading among women, and prostate cancer (11.3%) dominating among men. Nigeria’s cancer mortality ratio dwarfs that of developed nations; breast cancer, for example, kills 51% of patients in Nigeria compared to 19% in the US.
And yet, in the face of this crisis, the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT) — established to coordinate cancer care nationally — has chosen to allocate staggering sums for vehicles. In the 2025 approved budget, Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health received ₦2.37 trillion, with NICRAT allotted ₦63 billion. Hidden within that are three eyebrow-raising line items: ₦99,050,000 for “purchase of utility vehicles” (ERGP25206805), ₦99,180,000 for “purchase of one bus” (ERGP25206817), and ₦99,750,000 for “purchase of motor vehicles (SUV)” (ERGP25228204), while hundreds of perfectly good buses gather dust at the ICC, NICRAT is preparing to spend almost ₦300 million on yet more vehicles. The irony is deafening.
SecretsReporters learnt that government officials are “trying to verify” the ownership of the ICC land before making any move to revive the project. The Federal Ministry of Health’s legal department has reportedly struggled to determine whether the property belongs to Mrs. Yar’Adua’s NGO, the Women and Youth Empowerment Foundation (WAYEF), or to the Federal Government. Even the Abuja Geographic Information Systems (AGIS) has allegedly been unable to confirm the allocation — a curious claim in an era when land titles in the FCT are supposed to be digitised and traceable.
Dr. Chinedu Simeon Aruah, a leading oncologist and researcher, has painted a grim picture of Nigeria’s oncological landscape. According to him, as at 2019, only eight radiation oncology centres exist nationwide (seven public, one private), 90% of which are non-functional. Just one, the National Hospital Abuja, has a treatment planning system and CT simulator. There is only one functional high-dose-rate brachytherapy facility for gynaecological cancers, and even that struggles with source replacement and staff shortages. With fewer than 70 consultant radiation and clinical oncologists serving a population of over 200 million, patients endure agonising delays and advanced-stage diagnoses.
The statistics are a punch to the gut: Nigeria contributes 15% of Africa’s cancer cases (Sylla et al, 2011). In 2008, Africa recorded 681,000 new cases — meaning Nigeria’s share was over 100,000. The Nigerian population, estimated at 186 million in 2017 and growing at 3.2% annually, now faces an even larger cancer burden. Yet the government’s budgetary allocation to health has consistently fallen short of the 15% benchmark recommended by the World Health Organization. In 2018, only ₦340 billion — a mere 3.9% of the national budget — was earmarked for health.
Cancer has claimed the lives of several eminent Nigerians in recent years, including former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, former First Lady Maryam Babangida, Clara Oshiomhole, musician Sunny Okosun, legal icon Gani Fawehinmi, ex-NAFDAC boss Prof. Dora Akunyili, Ekiti’s former Deputy Governor Funmilayo Olayinka, and human rights activist Dr. Bekololari Ransome-Kuti.
Despite their wealth and influence, they could not escape the disease, showing that cancer affects all classes of society. Statistics indicate that about 100 Nigerians die from cancer every hour, amounting to over 864,000 annual deaths.
How Much US & UK Built Theirs.
Talking about the MD Anderson Cancer Centre in Texas, USA, Yar’Adua’s wifer desired to replicate, the original MD Anderson Hospital for Cancer Research, which later grew into today’s world-renowned MD Anderson Cancer Center, was completed in 1954 after several years of construction. Initially budgeted at $1.75 million in the early 1950s, rising costs pushed the final expenditure to nearly $9 million.
Using historical data, the actual recorded figure for the project was $9,001,198. To understand what that means in today’s terms, US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data provides a useful benchmark. The CPI averaged 26.9 in 1954 and 308.417 in 2024, giving an inflation multiplier of about 11.47.
Applying this adjustment, the 1954 construction cost translates to roughly $103.2 million in 2024 dollars.
For a Nigerian comparison, converting at the official Central Bank rate of ₦1,535.04 per dollar (as of August 25, 2025), the equivalent cost would be about ₦158.4 billion. Using a market proxy of ₦1,540 per dollar, the figure comes to ₦158.9 billion.
It is important to note that this inflation-adjusted estimate reflects purchasing power equivalence, not the actual replacement cost of such a facility today. Modern building standards, technology, regulatory requirements, and land values would likely make the present-day cost of establishing a hospital of similar scale far higher.
Meanwhile, it is a known trend that Nigerian politicians have found love with The London Clinic as their choice of hospital. Looking at what it would cost Nigeria to replicate such reliable cancer center, SecretsReporters discovered that in 2010, The London Clinic’s new cancer centre—known as the Duchess of Devonshire Wing—was built at a cost of £80 million. Taking a historical look at exchange rates, the average exchange rate for 2010 was approximately 1 NGN = £0.0043, which translates to about £1 = ₦232.56 (calculated as 1 divided by 0.0043).
Using the average rate £80,000,000 × ₦232.56 equalled to ₦18,604,800,000 (approximately ₦18.6 billion).
Currently, a specific data point confirms a rate of around ₦2,070.98 per one pound, which appears to reflect a particular spot rate or trade-specific figure by MConvert. Using the spot rate (₦2,070.98), £80,000,000 × ₦2,070.98 equals to ₦165,678,400,000 (approximately ₦165.7 billion).
Painfully, though estimates vary, but most place Nigeria’s annual expenditure on medical tourism is somewhere between $1 billion and $2.4 billion. The higher figure of $2.39 billion for 2024 suggests an uptick, signaling an ongoing strain on the country’s healthcare system and foreign reserves. This means Nigerians spend about ₦2.456 trillion yearly on medical tourism at ₦1,535.04/$1. To build a cancer center like that of The London Clinic could cost ₦165.7 billion only or the MD Anderson Cancer Center like which could only cost ₦158.9 billion only.
In the face of these figures, the abandoned ICC is more than just a wasted building. It is a symbol of a health system that has chosen politics, bureaucracy, and comfort over saving lives. It is a reminder that in Nigeria, the machinery of government can grind to a halt over something as basic as confirming a land title.
A Cry for Help
Speaking with SecretsReporters, pleading to stay anonymous, a pharmacist whose uncle recently died of cancer disclosed that part of the reasons Nigeria keep losing people to cancer is shortage of experts and treatment centers.
She said, ‘’Oncology care is quite a very tragic one currently in Nigeria for several reasons.
‘’First and foremost diagnosis can be slow, because most times the patient shows up in the laboratory when it’s already end stage, at this point we can’t say if the patient showed up late to the hospital or the physician took a long time people asking for the right text that could accurately diagnose the patient.
‘’Secondly after diagnosis are made the patients dilemma is heightened because there are few oncology specialists and functional centres in Nigeria for treatment. We have several centres that are labelled Cancer centres that are just laying waste and just used for only hosting forums and outreaches without providing care one of such is the Institute of Cancer centre and the cancer centre in Central Hospital Agbor.
‘’This goes to show how complacent the government is in the welfare of their citizens. We need to do more as a Nation for our people.’’
Similarly, a staff of the National Hospital Abuja, who equally pleaded to remain anonymous, affirmed that shortage of experts and centers remain a challenge for cancer treatment in the country. She said sometimes they refer patients to do investigation from other hospital to avoid delay as result of expert and facility shortage.
‘’If the cancer centre is revived it will help. It will definitely help because it it strictly for cancer treatment. Any patient you see there is for cancer. There will also be enough equipment to handle the growing number of cancer patients, The excuse is not only feeble but insulting. The cost of completing and operationalising the ICC is just a fraction of the Ministry of Health’s annual budget — and a drop in the ocean compared to what Nigerian politicians routinely spend on elections. In a country where an individual politician can burn through billions in campaign spending, the notion that a life-saving facility languishes for lack of “clarity” is a damning indictment of misplaced priorities.’’ she said.
She suggested that if the ICC is revived it would make a significant turnaround for the treatment of cancer especially as it is dedicated to just cancer treatment.
For Dr. Chinedu, who is a lecturer with the University of Abuja College of Medicine and Epidemiologist, Senior Research Fellow and Consultant Radiation & Clinical Oncologist, National Hospital Abuja, “establishment of a world class radiotherapy centre in National Hospital Abuja equipped with TPS, modern LINAC, CT simulator and Mosaiq for R&V’ is the solutions to challenges of Cancer Care in Nigeria.”
This in other words means reviving the abandoned International Cancer Centre. It has all it takes.
The International Cancer Centre was not built merely with bricks and mortar; it was built on the hopes of millions who believed Nigeria could rise above its neglect of the sick and vulnerable. Today, those hopes lie buried beneath weeds and dust, while the very leaders entrusted with public welfare choose SUVs over saving lives. If the government cannot summon the will to breathe life into this project, then its silence is not just negligence — it is complicity in the deaths of thousands. Reviving the ICC is not charity. It is not politics. It is a moral duty to a nation that has suffered long enough. Every day the ICC remains locked and lifeless, another patient takes their last breath waiting for care that never comes.
Efforts made by SecretsReporters to engage the Minister of Health, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate were unsuccessful. He invited our reporter to speak with him, but after waiting for hours, he couldn’t see him.