The Journey of Treatment: A Nightmare for Cancer Patients in Yemen

Yasmine Abdulhafeez – Sawt Al-Amal (Voice of Hope)

In 2019, Nahid Ahmad was shocked to learn she had leukemia, beginning a challenging and painful journey for her and her family. It started in Al-Hudaida, where they lived, but they quickly discovered that the available healthcare services didn’t meet her specialized medical needs.

The family was forced to travel repeatedly to Sana’a for tests, injections, and treatment at a better-equipped cancer center. This constant travel between Al-Hudaida and Sana’a was grueling; it depleted the family’s limited resources and deprived them of the stability crucial during critical treatment.

Facing the disease, life transforms into a battle demanding great sacrifices. This is reflected in the words of Nahid Ahmad’s mother, who describes the family’s agonizing journey during her daughter’s leukemia treatment. The mother says: “I sold all my jewelry, and my husband sold the land he had planned to build a house on after years of struggling with rent. We dreamed of a stable home, but all the money we saved was drained by treatment costs, the frequent travel expenses between Al-Hudaida and Sana’a (more than once a month), accommodation, transportation, and daily expenses. We couldn’t get free medicine, and the cost of injections and treatments was exorbitant.”

The suffering wasn’t limited to treatment costs but extended to the challenges of daily life. The mother sadly adds: “Providing Nahid with the necessary food was a huge challenge. She needed special nutrition due to her weakened immunity, but we struggled to afford it. My husband works as a bus driver, and his income barely covers our basic needs, especially with five children needing care and daily necessities. We endured more than two years of psychological and financial pressure.”

Amidst Nahid Ahmad’s battle with leukemia, the family faced a painful reality. They were advised to travel abroad for proper treatment and medical care, but this solution required financial resources the family didn’t possess. They had to seek help from charitable individuals and relatives. Despite receiving promises of assistance, hope in fulfilling those promises gave them the strength to persevere, and they began the initial travel arrangements.

Nahid’s mother painfully recounts: “We started the travel procedures and waited for two months, clinging to the promises we received from charitable people and some relatives who were merchants and wealthy individuals. But time wasn’t on our side; the disease spread rapidly in my daughter’s body, and she passed away. The doctors had repeatedly warned us about the consequences of delaying treatment, but the poverty we lived in left us powerless to act. Traveling abroad might be easy for the wealthy, but for the poor, it’s an unattainable dream—a dream they may die waiting for.”

The Penalty of Delay

Samar Abdul-Raqib’s story is not much different from Nahid Ahmad’s suffering; she too was a victim of the delayed support needed from her husband’s employer, which led to her disease worsening.

Her husband’s sister recounts the details: “My brother works for a government institution. When his wife was diagnosed with cancer, he applied for financial assistance from the institution to cover the cost of her travel to Egypt for treatment. He received promises of financial support but continued to follow up with management to no avail. Every time he was given a date to receive the money, he was surprised by another postponement. This delay lasted for two months, while his wife’s health was deteriorating.”

She continues: “During the waiting period, Samar’s doctor repeatedly warned her husband about the dangers of delaying the surgery and that the disease was spreading faster. But the harsh financial circumstances forced my brother to wait, unable to secure treatment costs on his own.”

After two months of waiting for financial support from her husband’s government institution, the family finally received the necessary amount, and Samar Abdul-Raqib, accompanied by her husband and brother-in-law, set off for Egypt, clinging to a glimmer of hope for finding the healthcare she lacked in her homeland.

Reasons that Force Patients to Travel Abroad

The deterioration of healthcare services in Yemen over many years has made traveling abroad a necessity for many Yemeni patients seeking treatment. With the scarcity of specialized healthcare facilities and limited medical resources available within the country, Arab and foreign countries have become the primary destination for many Yemenis suffering from serious illnesses requiring advanced medical care.

Egypt, India, and Jordan are among the countries witnessing a large influx of Yemeni cancer patients seeking healthcare services to treat their disease. Geographical proximity and a reputation for providing high-quality healthcare services at lower costs are among the most prominent factors that lead Yemenis to these countries.

Dr. Yasir Abdallah Noor, a faculty member at Al-Hudaida University, explains some of the reasons that drive cancer patients in Yemen to travel abroad for treatment, pointing to psychological, material, and cultural factors that influence this decision.

He says: “There are widespread rumors about weak medical diagnoses in Yemen; stories are told of patients diagnosed locally with cancer, but after traveling to countries like India, Jordan, or Egypt, it turned out that the diagnosis was wrong and they did not have tumors. This leads to a decline in trust in the local medical staff and a move abroad to seek confirmation of the diagnosis and treatment.”

The doctor believes that financially able patients often prefer to receive treatment abroad; they believe that the healthcare systems there are better equipped, giving them a sense of reassurance. He points out that the wide reputation enjoyed by medical centers in countries such as Egypt, India, and Jordan are a draw for many Yemeni patients who see them as destinations offering advanced and reliable treatment services.

He explained that patients who have previously been treated abroad often share their positive experiences with others in Yemen, and these personal experiences contribute to encouraging other patients to make the decision to travel. Despite all this, many patients are treated within Yemen, especially those whose financial circumstances do not allow them to travel. However, they face significant challenges due to the lack of resources and medical services needed to treat cancer.

The Role of the Center and Supporting Institutions

Dr. Umaima Ahmad Al-Hamzi, supervisor of the Hayat Center for Early Detection, affiliated with the National Cancer Control Foundation in Aden, highlights the strenuous efforts exerted by the foundation to support cancer patients and provide comprehensive medical and social services, despite the health and economic challenges facing Yemen.

She explains that the foundation provides a wide range of direct medical services to cancer patients, starting with early diagnosis, providing CT and MRI services, conducting necessary medical tests along with providing necessary supplies, consultations, and medical treatment, through providing a specialized oncologist who attends the foundation for free every Tuesday to examine patients. The foundation also works to support surgical interventions completely free of charge, in addition to providing social support through distributing food baskets and financial amounts to patients.

She adds in her speech: “At Al-Hayat Center for Early Detection, we provide direct services to visitors wishing to have a check-up or to cancer patients for follow-up of their therapeutic assessment; the center contains an ultrasound clinic specializing in detecting breast, neck, abdomen, and pelvic cancer, a mammography device specialized in detecting breast cancer, a cervix clinic using a colposcope, PapSmear, and a psychological support, training, and rehabilitation clinic for cancer patients.

Dr. Al-Hamzi points to cooperation with the Yemeni Foundation in Egypt to coordinate the treatment of thyroid cancer patients using radioactive iodine doses; the foundation covers all the costs of the patient and the accompanying persons, including accommodation and treatment.

The Role of Government Entities

Samia Mahyoob (33) begins her story about her difficult experience with leukemia. She says she wished she could have completed her treatment in Yemen, near her family and friends, but the poor healthcare services in the country’s hospitals and medical facilities were a major obstacle. This caused her constant anxiety, forcing her to travel to Egypt for treatment.

She says, “I received support from charitable people and merchants. I also sold my jewelry and received help from my family. There, I found all the treatments, underwent medical tests I couldn’t get in Yemen, and my health began to improve.”

Samia emphasizes that she received little to no support from government agencies, neither in Yemen nor abroad. She met other patients who told her they had received no government assistance either.

Marwa Al-Ariqi, a journalist and activist, speaks about the suffering of cancer patients in Yemen, asserting that government agencies do not provide sufficient support. She states, “There is virtually no government support for cancer patients. Even private institutions that rely on donations from businessmen and merchants cannot provide all the medications, only some.”

Despite the lack of government support in many areas, Al-Ariqi notes that the Immigration and Passports Authority played a positive role in facilitating travel procedures for patients. She says, “From my personal experience, I noticed the Immigration and Passports Authority’s responsiveness in issuing urgent passports for cancer patients in Taiz governorate, facilitating their travel abroad for treatment without delay.”

She believes the government should actively help cancer patients by providing all medications for free and ensuring that medications are not smuggled and are properly shipped. This would improve treatment opportunities for patients within Yemen and reduce their suffering.

Al-Ariqi concludes by stressing the need for relevant authorities to play a larger role in supporting cancer patients, especially given the difficult circumstances facing the Yemeni people due to the conflict and the deterioration of healthcare services.