By Kuda Pembere
Zimbabwe is moving to tighten cancer surveillance by considering making the disease notifiable, as part of broader health sector reforms to strengthen accountability and data quality, with officials saying the measure could improve reporting compliance across all sectors.
Officiating at a National Stakeholders Meeting on Cancer Notification, Health Ministry Secretary Aspect Maunganidze said the move is aligned with international best practice.
“So the purpose that we have here of strengthening collaboration and ensuring that all cancer cases diagnosed and treated are reported to the national registry is in line with those strategies that we have.
“I’m encouraged that many of you have already been working closely with the registry, but I now urge us to go further and to make reporting routine, consistent, and institutionalised across all our facilities.
“In line with the international best practise, the ministry will be exploring the designation of cancer as a notifiable disease,” he said. “We believe this will strengthen accountability and ensure more complete reporting.”
Dr Maunganidze also welcomed the integration of cancer registration into the national health information system.
“We also welcome the development of a cancer registration module within the DHS-2 platform, which will support more integrated and timely data systems.
“And as we move in this direction, we must ensure that data quality remains high, because poor quality data is also quite dangerous.
“It can be misleading if missing data becomes prominent. Let me acknowledge that data collection can sometimes feel like an additional burden.
“But we must remember that behind every form that we fill is a life, a patient, and a family, and an opportunity to improve future sustainability of those we deal with,” he said.
Eric Chokunonga, Registrar of the Zimbabwe National Cancer Registry, said making cancer notifiable would improve data submission, particularly from the private sector.
“Well, I think that’s the way forward, because this is what is being encouraged, especially in our region. Sometimes it’s difficult to get data from the private sector. We have issues of confidentiality, data protection and so forth.
“So once it’s legislated that cancer is now a notifiable disease, it makes reporting mandatory. And this is good for the registry. It will improve data collection,” he said.
He said the change would require all health facilities to report cancer cases, similar to communicable diseases.
“For instance, we have diseases like cholera. Diseases like these communicable diseases. You know, they have to be reported.
“It’s mandatory to report the cases. So according to the Public Health Act, such diseases have to be reported. Yes, so if cancer becomes a reportable, notifiable disease, what it means is that all those that manage a cancer patient will have to report to the registry the cases that they come across,” he said.
