Phoebe Ongadi: Global Colorectal Cancer Congress Highlights the Urgent Need for Accessible Ostomy Care

Phoebe Ongadi, Executive Director at Kenyan Network of Cancer Organizations, shared on LinkedIn:

“Ostomy care is not a privilege. It is a human right.

We have just concluded the Global Colorectal Cancer Congress in Nairobi, and while the conversations were rich, the stories shared about the challenges people living with ostomies face in accessing ostomy bags and essential accessories across Africa were deeply heartbreaking.

Many people across our continent, accessing these essential supplies remains a daily struggle. Affordability, limited availability, weak supply chains and inadequate health insurance coverage leave patients and families carrying a burden they should not have to bear.

Perhaps it is time we shifted the conversation.
We must begin to look at access to ostomy care through the lens of human rights, equity and social justice, rather than treating it merely as a medical or charitable concern.

A person living with an ostomy has the right to:

• Access affordable, quality ostomy bags and accessories.
• Receive comprehensive, dignified and continuous care.
• Participate fully in family, community and economic life without discrimination.
• Be protected from catastrophic out-of-pocket healthcare expenditure.

For cancer advocacy organizations and patient advocates, this presents an important advocacy agenda. We should engage governments, health financing institutions, policymakers, manufacturers and health insurers to ensure that ostomy appliances and related care are recognized as essential healthcare needs and adequately covered within national health insurance and Universal Health Coverage frameworks.

It is time for the World Health Assembly to make a clear policy declaration recognizing access to ostomy appliances, accessories and comprehensive ostomy care as an essential component of the right to health.”

You can also read:

GCCA Spotlights Advocacy and Patient Access at the 2026 Global CRC Congress