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ABUJA, Feb. 4-- A total of 41,000 Nigerians were killed by cancer in 2018, out of an estimated 166,000 cases recorded in the country, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday. WHO's health emergency team lead in Nigeria, Clement Peter, made the disclosure here at a seminar in commemoration of the "2019 World Cancer Day," which is observed annually on Feb. 4. The theme for this year's World Cancer Day is "I am and I will." "From our record, in 2018, we recorded an estimated 166,000 cases of the cancer burden in Nigeria and 41,000 deaths," Peter said at the seminar attended by Nigerian officials, medical practitioners, and some cancer patients. Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. There are more than 100 types of cancer. Its key drivers in Nigeria and most African countries are tobacco use, alcohol consumption, sedentary lifestyle, polluted environments, and unhealthy diets, according to experts. Nigeria might continue to experience a rise in the scourge if stringent measures were not taken by the government, local communities and individuals toward addressing the key drivers of the disease, Peter said. Globally, 14 million new cases and 8.2 million deaths were recorded in 2017, while 18.1 million new cases and 9.6 million deaths were recorded in 2018, according to WHO's data. | 
