The government can provide only 20% of the price of medications and other needs for the cancer patients in Yemen, Health Minister, Ahmed Al-Ansi, said, pointing out at the launch of the national campaign to combat cancer on Thursday that the deteriorating economic situation is blamed for the shortfall.
Yemen's economy has further deteriorated due to the 2011 turmoil affecting all basic services, some of which are almost absent.
Many countries in the world can't provide all healthcare services for patients without support from the society and agencies, he said, urging a concerted effort to fight cancer in the country.
He called all agencies, mainly charitable ones, to help the national cancer control foundation to accomplish its responsibilities well, hailing the efforts of President Hadi including the orders to establish centers to combat cancer in the capital Sanaa and other provinces including Aden and Taiz.
Secretary general of the trustees council at the foundation, Abdul Wasi Hayel, said about 20,000 Yemeni people are affected by cancer a year. 9,000 of the figure are almost killed by this disease, amid poor healthcare services and other difficulties including the absence of transportation means to help patients, he said.
"One of the key reasons for the deaths of the cancer patients is that 70% of them visit hospitals at late stages of the disease and this increases the number of those killed by cancer a year," he said.