As South Africa navigates the complexities of its 2025/26 Budget Vote, a critical dilemma is emerging: the reallocation of funds traditionally aimed at combating communicable diseases like HIV and tuberculosis could come at a grave cost to cancer patients.

With non-communicable diseases, particularly blood cancer, on the rise, experts warn that redirecting resources might further jeopardise the already fragile infrastructure for cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment.

Palesa Mokomele, Head of Community Engagement and Communications at DKMS Africa, an international non-profit organisation dedicated to the fight against blood cancer - highlighted the dire situation faced by blood cancer patients in the country.

“Nearly 80% of South Africans rely on a system already operating at full capacity, with many left with little more than hope due to limited access to care.

“Even before these new funding shifts, resources for blood cancer detection and treatment were critically scarce, contributing to the loss of more than 4,000 lives each year.”

Mokomele illustrated how inadequate medical infrastructure creates insurmountable barriers to life-saving care.

“The survival rate for a stem cell transplant is up to 50% with a matched unrelated donor and 61% with a matched related donor. Yet many healthcare facilities don’t have the resources to perform these procedures. As a result, most patients receive only medical management, which may not be enough to ensure survival.

“Given our population size, transplant activity remains critically low—only 139 of the required 600 transplants are performed on adults annually, and just 18 of the 250 needed for children.”