Nigeria records new cancer treatment milestone with actinium therapy at Loveworld Medical Centre

Nigeria has recorded a new milestone in advanced cancer treatment with the deployment of Actinium-based radiopharmaceutical therapy at Loveworld Medical Centre (LMC), Lagos, as specialists push precision oncology as a targeted alternative to conventional cancer treatment.

The development was disclosed at the 2026 International Symposium on Radiopharmaceutical Therapy (ISRT), themed “Advancing Radiotheranostics and Precision Oncology in Africa,” held at the medical centre on Friday.

Iziaq Adekunle Salako, minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, said Nigeria’s response to cancer must go beyond improving access to conventional treatment to include research, innovation, skilled manpower, infrastructure and effective regulation.

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Salako, who was represented by David Oladele, deputy director of Research, Nigeria Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), Yaba, at the symposium, posited that, radiopharmaceutical therapy represents an important frontier in modern medicine, adding that Nigeria needed to develop local capacity and establish partnerships that could translate scientific discoveries into accessible healthcare.

He urged Nigerian and international institutions to deepen collaboration, pursue technology transfer and build the workforce needed to make advanced cancer treatment more accessible.

Adeola Philips, executive minister, ministry of healing, healthcare and medical services and chairman, Loveworld Medical Centre, said the centre had deliberately positioned the symposium as a platform for building African expertise.

Philips disclosed that more…