Speaker of Parliament, Jacob Oboth while updating Legislators on Parliament’s contribution to the upcoming Cancer Run.By Prisca WanyenyaSpeaker of Parliament Jacob Oboth has called for increased investment in the fight against cancer, citing data showing Uganda records nearly 30,000 new cases and over 18,000 deaths annually.He made the appeal during the August 27, 2026 plenary while urging MPs to participate in the upcoming Cancer Run organised by Centenary Bank. Parliament contributed Shs3 billion towards construction of the Rotary Cancer Treatment Centre at St. Francis Hospital Nsambya, bringing Parliament’s total contribution over the years to Shs7.2 billion.“While global standards require one radiotherapy machine per one million people, our nation of nearly 50 million citizens currently relies on just three operational machines. This is a public health crisis that demands immediate parliamentary leadership, and we are here to offer that,” Oboth said.Bernard Otim (Maruzi North) informed Parliament of a recent visit by the Health Committee to the Uganda Cancer Institute (UCI) where they learnt the Institute has only one cancer screening van serving the whole country.“The information we picked shows this van was even a donation, not purchased by Government money. The team indicated they have budgeted for four consecutive years to buy more vans, but money has not been availed. It is my plea that this House prioritises money for screening vans in the coming budget. This van can go to communities and help in early detection and awareness,” Otim said.Minister of State for Primary Health Care Dr. Charles Ayume acknowledged the high burden, saying economic costs, morbidity and mortality speak for themselves, but noted Government investment has grown compared to 20 years ago when the cancer budget was a paltry Shs300 million.“It is a highly intensive sector in terms of infrastructure, machines, and training of super specialists. We are not yet there but we have started decentralising cancer services so that instead of everybody coming from Kisoro, Koboko, Kanungu to Kampala, we now have regional centres and our first oncology centre in Gulu is complete,” Ayume said.Parliament was informed of plans to decongest UCI through opening oncology centres in Mbale, Arua, Mbarara, to be supplemented by UPDF Army Hospital in Mbuya, Aga Khan Hospital and International Specialised Hospital in Lubowa, whose completion is expected next year.“The number of radiotherapy machines, linear accelerators will go up but also on prevention for cervical cancer which affects women, as a Ministry we immunise girls of 10 years with HPV vaccine to prevent cervical cancer later. There is a lot of work done, we need all hands on deck, it cannot only be left to Government,” Ayume added.He also cautioned Ugandans to adopt healthier lifestyles by avoiding alcohol abuse, smoking and being cautious about food storage.“We should address issues like aflatoxins, the way we store food. The building Act should also speak to asbestos which has correlation with lung cancer but it is common to go to some police barracks and you still find asbestos,” he said.Dr. Ayume said one of the biggest game changers will be the PET project which has been an unfunded priority for over six years.“Many referrals abroad are purely for PET scanning but the PET project is at about 60 percent completion and hopefully by next year once complete we should reduce cancer referrals abroad by half,” he said.The Ministry’s commitment that Lubowa Hospital would be completed next year prompted Leader of Opposition Joel Ssenyonyi to demand an update, given earlier attempts by Parliament Committees to access the site were futile.“I don’t know whether it is a hospital or a construction site, a lot of money pumped there. Parliament has severally tried to access it to play our oversight role, but we were denied access. At one time, the then Minister of Health was denied access,” Ssenyonyi said.“We need to pick interest and know what is happening. The update is good that it will be ready next year, but we are not going to wait for next year. Parliament should get access so we know what the money appropriated there is doing,” he added.However, Dr. Ayume urged optimism, saying superstructures are now visible beyond the hoarding.“It is normal procedure that when you are constructing, you cover the site for health and safety. Committees of Parliament are free to access Lubowa, they are at liberty to write to the proprietor and access the hospital and the given timeline for completion is end of 2027,” Ayume said.The post Speaker Decries Cancer Crisis as Uganda Registers 30,000 New Cases Annually with Only 3 Radiotherapy Machines appeared first on Business Focus.