Conflict halts cancer treatment, says Tigray hospital

By Joice Etutu

One of the biggest hospitals in the Tigray region of Ethiopia says the conflict there has prevented people with cancer from getting life-saving treatment.

More than 1,700 cancer patients are at risk of death due to a scarcity of everything from laboratory tests to chemotherapy drugs, doctors at Ayder Comprehensive Specialised Hospital tell the BBC.

The facility serves nine million people in Tigray, and its medics say months of war have led to a "near collapse" of health systems in the region.

Ayder Comprehensive Specialised Hospital has called on Ethiopia's health ministry to send essential medical supplies to help ease the crisis and improve treatment for cancer patients.

In the meantime, the hospital says it is no longer able treat its paediatric and adult cancer patients despite only launching its cancer care unit five years ago.

This article originally appeared in BBC News

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