Cancer Research Funding in Africa

Africa is projected to witness the steepest rise in cancer incidence and mortality in the coming decades. Therefore, it is critical to understand the current landscape of cancer research funding to identify key gaps and inform decision-making.

We conducted a retrospective study of funded cancer research projects involving at least one African country over the 20 years between January 2004 and December 2023. Data was collected from four publicly available databases, namely the International Cancer Research Partnership (ICRP), National Institutes of Health World Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools (WoRLD RePORT), ClinicalTrials.gov (CTG), and International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP). We retrieved data on country, year of funding, cancer types, study types, and funding sources. Furthermore, we used incidence, mortality, and prevalence data to compare the level of funded projects to the burden of disease.

A total of 3047 unique funded projects/grants were reported from all 4 databases, with a consistent rise in the number of funded projects throughout the study period. Egypt and South Africa had the most funded cancer research projects, and 9 (16%) countries had no reported studies. Breast, lung, and cervical cancers received the highest funding allocation. We found that several cancers, notably cervical, prostate, and liver, are relatively underfunded compared to their disease burden. 70% of projects reported in ICRP/WoRLD RePORT were funded by the U.S. NIH. Notably, 40% of studies in CTG/ICTRP reported local funding, with Egypt accounting for 94% of these locally financed studies.

This study provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of cancer research funding in Africa, highlighting notable gaps and critical insights to guide data-driven decision-making.