NCD burden rising as Ghana struggles with prevention, awareness and long-term care – Health Expert

Ghana is facing a growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), with low public awareness, unhealthy lifestyles and challenges in long-term disease management complicating efforts to provide safe care, according to Dr Efua Commeh, Municipal Director of Health at La Nkwantanang-Madina in the Greater Accra region. She said although infectious diseases remained prevalent, chronic conditions appeared to be increasingly overtaking them, requiring a stronger response from the health system and greater public awareness of NCD risk factors. Dr Commeh was speaking during a panel discussion held as part of the 2026 World Patient Safety Day celebrations on the theme “Safe Care for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).” She said unhealthy diets and physical inactivity were among the modifiable risk factors contributing to the NCD burden.

According to her, changes in lifestyles had reduced the amount of physical activity incorporated naturally into people’s daily routines, while access to fast food had increased. “We need to be conscious of ensuring that we can incorporate physical activity into our lifestyle,” she said. Hypertension largely undetected Dr Commeh cited hypertension as a particular concern, saying available data indicated that 21.7 per cent of adults aged 18 to 69 in Ghana were hypertensive.

What is worse, she said less than half of people with hypertension were aware that they had the condition, leaving many undiagnosed until they developed complications. “One out of every five Ghanaians is hypertensive,” she said, stressing that the condition could remain unnoticed because blood pressure could rise without obvious symptoms. She said diabetes and cancer also contributed significantly to the country’s NCD burden.

Dr Commeh cited breast cancer figures for 2022, when more than 5,000 new cases were recorded, with more than 2,000 deaths. She also cited cervical cancer, for which about 3,026 cases were recorded, with more than 1,000 deaths. She attributed some of the high cancer mortality to late presentation and limited screening, which meant that some conditions were not detected early.

Dr Commeh said the long-term nature of NCD treatment also presented challenges for patients and healthcare providers. Unlike some infectious diseases that may require treatment for a relatively short period, patients with conditions such as hypertension and diabetes may hav…