Vice-President Dr Jane Mayemu Ansah has donated food items worth K15 million to about 250 cancer patients and their guardians at Kamuzu Central Hospital as part of a Mother’s Day outreach programme through the Jane Ansah Foundation.
The donation, made on Thursday at the National Cancer Centre, included maize flour, soya pieces and sausages for patients undergoing treatment and for guardians staying at the hospital’s shelter.
Dr Ansah, who has previously spoken publicly about her own experience with cancer, coupled the donation with a visit to patients in the lymphoma ward, where she offered encouragement to those undergoing treatment.
“I just came to visit you on Mother’s Day, and the government is also there to support you to get tested and get better,” she said.
She told patients that they were not alone in their fight against the disease and reiterated the importance of early testing and access to appropriate care.
The Vice-President also paid tribute to healthcare workers, commending their dedication to caring for patients, and recognised the contribution made by guardians supporting family members through lengthy periods of treatment.
Noting the presence of men as well as women among those caring for relatives, she said responsibility for looking after sick family members should be shared across households.
Dr Ansah further encouraged young people to work hard at school and consider careers in medicine and allied professions, saying the country’s healthcare system depended on future generations of trained specialists.
Meanwhile, Amos Msekandiana, the director of Kamuzu Central Hospital, said the facility was equipped to provide cancer treatment and disclosed plans to construct a guardians’ shelter at an estimated cost of US$1 million.
The donation formed part of Mother’s Day commemorations across Malawi, although for the patients and guardians gathered at the National Cancer Centre the occasion was marked less by celebration than by a gesture of support from the country’s second-highest office-holder.
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