Survey of tumour markers availability in Nigerian Tertiary Hospitals

Abstract

Background: Tumour markers are substances valuable in the clinical management of some cancers to enhance screening, aiding diagnosis, and follow  up of particular forms of cancers. This study was carried out to assess the availability of tumour markers associated with the five commonest cancers in  Nigeria.

Methods: The study employed a cross-sectional hospital-based multicenter research design, conducted in University Teaching Hospitals and  Federal Medical Centers (FMC) in Nigeria. The data collection tool was a semi-quantitative selfadministered questionnaire, and analysis was done using  Stata version 13. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05.

Results: Thirty-four tertiary healthcare institutions, including University Teaching Hospitals  and FMCs participated in the study. Alpha fetoprotein was the most common (55.9%) tumour marker followed by B-HCG (44.1%), while Beta-2- microglobulin and thyroglobulin were the least (2.9%) assayed. There were other noted differences in availability of tumour markers between University  Teaching Hospitals and FMCs. A Secondary outcome of this study was the distribution of Pathologists in the surveyed institutions. 

Conclusion: The  availability of tumour markers in Nigerian tertiary care institutions was found to be low. There is need for a concerted effort on the part of all  stakeholders in cancer care to change this narrative and make relevant tumour markers readily available in tertiary care centers.