The world cancer day is celebrated every year on the 4th of February, and this year’s theme is impactful. The theme for the year 2019 “I am and I will” centers around personal commitments to raising awareness for cancer also showing solidarity to the survivors of the malignancy. Cancer is caused when there is an abnormal cells divide or growth which may then spread to other tissues in the body. Some of the types of this malignancy cause rapid cell growth in the body while others affect cells causing them to grow and divide at a slower rate. Cancer, however, is not restricted to a particular area in the body, they can grow anywhere and there are over 200 types of it. This malignancy is the second leading cause of death in the world and is not limited to any particular age. 
There is however a significant improvement in the mortality rate of the disease due to the improvement in treatment and early screening and detection. It is pertinent to point out that there are some cancers more common than the others and they include: breast cancer, lung and bronchus cancer, prostate cancer, colon and rectum cancer, melanoma of the skin, bladder cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, kidney and renal pelvis cancer, endometrial cancer, leukaemia, pancreatic cancer, thyroid cancer, and liver cancer, cervical cancer among others. Nigeria as opposed to the rest of the world is however more plagued with the occurrence of this malignancy because of such factors such as high cost of cancer management, late detection, misdiagnosis, lack of medical expertise to treat patients, lack of chemotherapy facilities or radiotherapy machines, little financial support from government and low awareness of the disease. 
There are many causes of cancer which includes but are not limited to the gene, environmental factors, alcohol, infections, overexposure to ultraviolet ray coming from the sun, obesity, age, air pollution and many more. Most times, cancers are not quickly detected until they have aggravated into something much bigger or a little difficult to treat. This majorly is the reason why constant check up and screening is encouraged. As Africans, and first, a citizen of the world, adopting the ubuntu spirit is important when trying to curb the growth and spread of cancer. The malignancy is non-communicable so one should endeavor to spread the word of awareness and solidarity to survivors of cancer so that the disease can be defeated once and for all. Believing that you can and you will survive and help to defeat cancer is key in the struggle against the malignancy, so endeavor to say yes to life today! 
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