How "Misdiagnosis" Killed Akunyili

"After surviving several rumours of her death, a
former Minister of Information and
Communication and erstwhile Director General of
the National Agency for Food and Drug
Administration and Control, NAFDAC, Professor
Dora Nkem Akunyili, bowed to ovarian cancer
early yesterday.
Meanwhile, her death was blamed on
misdiagnosis by some doctors in the United
States (US). The doctors were said to have
claimed she did not have cancer after her
Nigerian doctor’s diagnosis to the effect she had
the sickness.
The Cable, an online medium quoting a family
source, yesterday, blamed misdiagnosis for
Akunyili’s death.
According to the source, when in 1998, the former
Minister was the Zonal Secretary (South-east) of
the Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund, Nigerian
doctors gave her what many of her family
members considered to be a health scare. They
said she had a growth and needed surgery.
The source narrated: “Akunyili, then 44, decided
to travel to the United States, first to get a
second opinion and then undergo the prescribed
surgery. The bill for the medical trip was $17,000,
including $12,000 for the surgery. During pre-
surgery check-up in the US, the doctors told her
the Nigerian doctors had made a wrong diagnosis
and that she did not need any surgery.
“It was said to be a minor issue that medication
would solve. She thanked the doctors and, to
their surprise, said she was going to return the
money meant for the surgery to PTF. That was
strange. Nigerian government officials had
devised a way of making sure such monies were
not returned to the treasury.
“The hospital informed the PTF, under the
leadership of Major Gen. Muhammadu Buhari,
about one honest Nigerian they had found.
Buhari, himself a straightforward person, was very
impressed. He wrote a letter to Akunyili
commending her honesty. NAFDAC Then came
2001. President Olusegun Obasanjo wanted to
appoint a director-general for the National Agency
for Drug and Food Administration and Control
(NAFDAC) and asked for the recommendation of
an honest Nigerian pharmacist. Akunyili’s name
promptly came up.
“Someone who had heard about her PTF record
recommended her. There was a little problem, a
Nigerian problem. Objections were raised that the
minister of health, Prof. ABC Nwosu, was an Igbo
from Anambra State and NAFDAC, being a
powerful agency under the ministry, should not be
headed by another Igbo from Anambra. It was
also argued that the market for fake and
substandard products were controlled by the
Igbo, with Onitsha – also in Anambra State – a
major centre for the illicit business. She was
going to protect “her people”, the antagonists
said.
“Obasanjo, stubborn to the cause, ignored the
observations and appointed her. She went on to
do a credible job and ended up as one of the
most outstanding public officers in Nigeria’s
history, celebrated locally and globally. She had
lost a sister to fake drugs, and that was perhaps
the impetus she needed to go on the offensive.
Misdiagnosis Meanwhile, Akunyili always went
abroad for check-ups and she was always given
an all-clear. She continued to look robust and
energetic, and took up another government job as
minister of information and communications.
“But on July 13, 2013, something strange
happened to her. She was preparing to travel to
the United States to receive an award. The
following day was her birthday. Her 59th,
precisely. Then she fell ill. She was physically
weak and having pains. She decided to go ahead
with her trip and attend to her health in the
United States. It was while she was there that
new checks were carried out.
“Alas, she had cancer. The original diagnosis in
1998 was right. But the diagnosis at the point of
surgery was wrong. She became seriously ill and
there were fears she could lose her life. She was
in the hospital for months and only returned to
Nigeria this year when the doctors said she was
improving. Her last public appearance was at the
National Conference in Abuja, where she was a
delegate. Pictures of a frail-looking Akumyili soon
went viral on the net.