Malawi is set to reduce its dependence on costly overseas cancer treatment after reaching a landmark partnership with the International Blantyre Cancer Centre (IBCC), a private specialist hospital founded by banker and investor Thomson Mpinganjira.
The agreement will allow the Ministry of Health to begin referring eligible public patients to the facility, marking one of the country’s biggest public-private healthcare partnerships and giving many cancer patients access to radiotherapy without leaving Malawi.
For years, Malawians requiring radiotherapy were routinely referred to hospitals in countries such as South Africa and India because the country lacked the specialised equipment needed to treat many forms of cancer.
The arrangement placed a heavy financial burden on both families and the government, while forcing seriously ill patients to seek care far from home.
Speaking during a visit by a Ministry of Health delegation ahead of the signing of the referral agreement, Mpinganjira said the hospital was established to address those challenges rather than generate profits.
