The Federal Government has said there is an urgent need to build the capacity of doctors in the use of artificial intelligence for the early detection of oral cancers.

It noted that according to the Pan African Medical Journal, 1,146 new cases of oral cancer are reported yearly across the country, with 764 deaths, making oral cancer a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the country.

Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, disclosed this in Abuja during a training on the use of Artificial Intelligence in the early detection of oral cancers and premalignant disorders organised by Cleft and Facial Deformity Foundation (CFDF) in collaboration with the University of Hong Kong.

He urged health workers, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), local and international partners, and other relevant stakeholders to collaborate to address the menace of oral cancer.

Ehanire, who was represented by the Director of the Dentistry Division of the Federal Ministry of Health, Dr. Gloria Uzoigwe, said: “Oral cancers remain a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Nigeria. This is due to late reporting to the hospital, inability of healthcare workers to detect the lesion and refer appropriately.

“This has caused a huge economic burden on the sufferers and their families, and this could have been prevented if these lesions were detected early,” he said.

In his address, the Executive Director Cleft and Facial Deformity Foundation (CFDF), Dr. Seidu Bello, said, “The CFDF and University of Hong Kong partnership came up in 2022.

“The programme is the Knowledge Exchange Funding Scheme for Strategic Impact. The focus is oral cancer and how to encourage early detection.

“Artificial Intelligence can assist in the early detection of oral cancer because if we are able to detect it early, we stand the chance of saving many lives.

“Ultimately, our hope is to encourage early detection of oral cancer, and to be able to train many Nigerian professionals about Artificial Intelligence,” he added. (The Nation)

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