Kisumu Governor Prof. Anyang’ Nyong’o has recounted an emotional 15-year battle with prostate cancer.
In a statement shared on his social media account on Friday, July 10, 2026, Nyong’o revealed how the life-changing diagnosis inspired the creation of the Africa Cancer Foundation (ACF), which has since become one of Kenya’s leading cancer advocacy and support organisations.
Nyong’o, during the foundation’s 15th anniversary celebrations under the theme “Own Your Cancer Story”, reflected on the day he learned he had prostate cancer.
According to him, the day was a defining moment that reshaped both his life and his mission.
“Fifteen years ago, I sat in a doctor’s office and heard words that would change the trajectory of my life: prostate cancer. It is a moment that strips you bare. It confronts you with your own fragility, with the terrifying silence of mortality,” Nyong’o stated.
The Kisumu governor added that the diagnosis became the beginning of a larger commitment to ensure that no Kenyan battling cancer would have to face the disease alone.
“In that darkness, however, something remarkable happened. Mama Kisumu, Dorothy Nyong’o, and I made a solemn vow not only to survive, but to ensure that no Kenyan, regardless of the weight of their purse or the emptiness of their pockets, would have to walk the cancer journey alone, abandoned and without hope. That vow became the Africa Cancer Foundation,” he added.
Nyong’o further said the organisation’s work is ultimately about people whose lives are disrupted by the disease.
As a part of the anniversary celebrations, the Africa Cancer Foundation launched a mobile cancer clinic aimed at taking screening services directly to communities through outreach programmes in markets and other public spaces.
Nyong’o revealed that the initiative is intended to improve early diagnosis, which remains one of the biggest challenges in cancer treatment.
