Pink October: Senegal, Tunisia, and the DRC focus on breast cancer screening

Several African countries launched their Pink October campaigns in late September and early October 2026, marking the international month for breast cancer awareness. In Senegal, Tunisia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, health authorities and associations have focused on a single priority: reducing late-stage diagnoses, which remain the primary cause of preventable deaths.

Senegal: A center dedicated to women's cancers

The Senegalese League Against Cancer (LISCA) opened the campaign under the theme "Act for Life." The country records approximately 2,220 new breast cancer cases per year and 1,300 deaths, according to figures reported by allAfrica. A screening center for women's cancers is expected at the Dalal Jamm Hospital in Guédiawaye, in the suburbs of Dakar.

Tunisia: 24 governorates and a mobile unit

The Tunisian national campaign was launched on September 30, 2026, on Habib Bourguiba Avenue in Tunis by the National Office for Family and Population (ONFP), under the supervision of the Ministry of Health. According to Business News, the national cancer registry recorded nearly 4,400 new cases of breast cancer in 2024: it is the most frequent cancer among Tunisian women.

The initiative covers all 24 governorates, utilizing both fixed facilities and mobile teams, including the "Mammolife" mobile clinic that offers consultations and mammograms. Between 2015 and 2024, the ONFP reported that approximately 150,000 women benefited from a clinical breast exam, with 2,370 cases detected at an early stage. The office's director of medical services noted that "about 300 out of every 1,000" women clinically examined are referred for a mammogram.

DRC: Nearly one million women targeted

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the country records more than 9,700 new breast cancer cases per year, in addition to 11,200 cases of cervical cancer. Screening is set to be offered to 912,000 women across six provinces, and 5,000 women in Kinshasa are expected to receive free breast cancer screenings through 2028.

Screening: The weak link

Globally, 2.3 million new cases of breast cancer were diagnosed in 2022. In Africa, the disease is often discovered at an advanced stage due to a lack of mammography machines, pathologists, and accessible care pathways: survival often depends less on medicine than on where one lives. The October campaigns are therefore most valuable for what they leave behind—centers, machines, and teams that continue to operate during the other eleven months of the year.