For nearly a decade, CMMB has worked with communities and government to bring cancer care to Kenya’s Kitui County, where breast and cervical cancer account for half of all cancer diagnoses. Today, women have broader access to screening, an essential for catching cancer in its early stages, when it is easiest to cure. More girls protect their futures with the HPV vaccine. And cancer patients, who once traveled far distances for treatment, receive quality medical care and emotional support closer to home.

Yet for all these advancements, more work remains. Every year, nearly 7000 Kenyan women die from breast or cervical cancer. Many of these deaths can be prevented. Inspired by our progress, we are growing our cancer care program in Kitui County and expanding it into Kwale County, another high-need area.

Partnerships Create Lasting Impact

Phangisile Mtshali Cancer Center at the Kitui County Referral Hospital.

CMMB forged strong partnerships to bring quality cancer prevention and care to Kitui, a mostly rural county in southeastern Kenya. In 2017, we partnered with Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation (BMSF), the Ministry of Health, the National Cancer Institute of Kenya, and Kitui County government to launch the program.

A new grant from BMSF will continue this work, and expand it to Kwale County, an area with a rising cancer burden located on Kenya’s southern coast. Using proven approaches, we will promote HPV vaccination and cancer screening, strengthen diagnostic and treatment services, improve palliative care and survivorship, and enhance data management and research.

Community Awareness

Stronger systems of prevention and care begin with community education. In Kitui, CMMB promoted the importance of cancer screenings on radio talk shows and social media platforms. Healthcare workers reviewed screening recommendations with patients during other medical appointments, and community health workers visited families at home to share educational materials, like guidance for conducting a breast self-exam.

CMMB’s community awareness campaigns reached more than one million people in Kitui County and beyond. As knowledge increases, so has the demand for cervical and breast cancer screening and preventative services.

HPV Vaccination

A clinician administers a vaccination to an adolescent.

Most cervical cancer cases can be prevented with vaccination against HPV (the human papillomavirus), the primary cause of nearly all cervical cancer cases. Through community meetings and school visits, CMMB promotes the benefits of vaccination. Since the start of our Kitui County project, we have vaccinated 55,924 girls ages 9 to 15, spreading hope for a future free of cervical cancer.

Stronger Health Systems

A doctor at Phangisile Mtshali Cancer Center prepares cancer treatment in a sterile environment.

For too long, cancer patients in Kitui County experienced life-threatening delays in care. Diagnostic test results could take 24 months. Patients struggled to afford the cost of traveling to distant facilities for chemotherapy. And there were few places to go nearby for cancer screening.

In 2023, in partnership with county government, CMMB built and equipped the Phangisile Mtshali Cancer Center at the Kitui County Referral Hospital. Now, diagnostic testing takes just one month or less, helping patients start treatment sooner. The county government supports a dedicated team of healthcare professionals, including oncologists, oncology nurses, and pharmacists. This workforce is trained to provide integrated chemotherapy and palliative care services to some patients. The cancer center is also linked with a telemedicine platform connecting its healthcare workers with a global community of experts and enhancing the quality of the services. Since it opened, the center has cared for more than 500 new cancer patients from Kitui and other counties.

More cases are caught early, thanks to expanded screening access. A CMMB-supported cancer registry, the first of its kind in Kitui County, tracks cervical and breast cancer cases, creating a database that supports policy and program development.

Palliative Care and Survivor Support

A cancer diagnosis is devastating for a patient and his or her family. CMMB supports a palliative care unit at Ikutha Sub-County Hospital in Kitui South and trains healthcare professionals and community health workers to deliver compassionate and dignified support, including home-based care.

CMMB-supported cancer patient support groups have evolved into a registered community-based organization that helps patients access treatment, reduces stigma, and promotes early detection. Veronica, a cervical cancer survivor and a support group leader, says they are “creating hope.”

Veronica’s ‘Life of Example’

Veronica, a cancer survivor and leader of a support group, sits in a chair.

Veronica, a nurse in the Kiangu region of Kitui County, noticed unusual bleeding. In February 2014, a biopsy confirmed she had cervical cancer, a frightening diagnosis for a widow with children who needed her.

At the time, the closest treatment facility was in Nairobi, 180 miles from home. Traveling to appointments was a struggle, but Veronica was determined. She took an unpaid leave from her job and sourced funds for treatment. There was one bus to Nairobi, and Veronica made sure she was on it, commuting back and forth for surgery and 25 rounds of radiotherapy.

Since 2015, Veronica has been in remission. A proud survivor, Veronica is committed to helping other women facing their own cancer battle. She is the founder and leader of a cancer support group, whose members share encouragement, help each other pay for medication, and visit those who are sick.

Veronica also appears on radio shows to raise awareness about the importance of regular screening and HPV vaccination. Her “life of example” shows others they can survive cancer. “Since we’ve come out openly and shared our experiences about cancer, so many come out for screening, and those already undergoing treatment are no longer hiding at home,” Veronica told us.

Veronica’s story of determination and service shows how early detection and treatment can save one life—and impact many others. Together with our community partners, CMMB will continue to provide compassionate cancer care to women and girls in Kenya’s underserved communities.

January 2026 footer.