24/04/2024
The free to all app provides personalized disease information and emotional support resources for cancer patients and their loved ones.
This is the first launch of the app on the African continent with plans to launch in Tanzania and Nigeria in the coming months.
NAIROBI, KENYA AND NEW YORK, April 24, 2024 – Pfizer today announced the launch of the ‘Living With’ app in Kenya aimed at providing cancer patients and their loved ones with useful tools to help navigate the emotional, physical and practical challenges of living with cancer.
In Kenya, more than 42,000 new incidences of cancer were reported in 20201 and, as the third leading cause of death in the country, cancer is a major public health concern, placing a great burden on families, communities, and the health system. Notably, cervical and breast cancers, which are reproductive cancers affecting women, contribute to 23% of all cancer-related deaths in the country, with nine women dying of cervical cancer every day.2 In addition to coping with the stress caused by the diagnosis, cancer patients have to deal not only with the physical ailments resulting from the illness and its treatment, but also with permanent health impairment, disability, fatigue and pain. Emotional stress and mental problems can cause difficulties in everyday life, such as not being able to work, financial problems and a lack of social support.3
The ‘Living With’ app, which is free for all users, is designed to address the challenges patients may experience, providing access to educational resources on topics such as fatigue, pain, sleep and mood, as well as a medication manager, daily task tracker and a notes tool. The app also enables patients to share information or ask for support from their close circle and community and gain access to local patient associations and care providers.
“A cancer diagnosis can be debilitating to an individual, their caregivers and community, said Anne Dembah, Pfizer East Africa Cluster Lead. We believe that access to information and support shouldn't be limited by where you live. “The ‘Living With’ app presents an opportunity to bridge the gap between patients and the resources they need, right in the palms of their hands. This is not just about technology, it is about empowering patients, transforming lives and bringing hope to those affected by cancer across Kenya.”
In order to ensure that app content best addresses the needs of patients in Kenya, Pfizer will collaborate with local experts and national patient advocacy groups, including Kilele Health Association and the Kenya Network of Cancer Organisations (KENCO) for ongoing feedback and content co-creation.
The ‘Living With’ app for Kenya is available for download in the Apple App Store and on Google Play. To date, the app has been launched in 13 countries, including Kenya, and it has been downloaded by more than 90,000 users around the world. Pfizer plans to launch the app in Tanzania and Nigeria later this year.
About Pfizer
At Pfizer, we apply science and our global resources to bring therapies to people that extend and significantly improve their lives. We strive to set the standard for quality, safety and value in the discovery, development and manufacture of health care products, including innovative medicines and vaccines. Every day, Pfizer colleagues work across developed and emerging markets to advance wellness, prevention, treatments and cures that challenge the most feared diseases of our time. Consistent with our responsibility as one of the world's premier innovative biopharmaceutical companies, we collaborate with health care providers, governments and local communities to support and expand access to reliable, affordable health care around the world. For more than 170 years, we have worked to make a difference for all who rely on us. We routinely post information that may be important to investors on our website at www.pfizer.com. In addition, to learn more, please visit us on and follow us on X at @Pfizer and @Pfizer News, LinkedIn, YouTube and like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/Pfizer
1 fpubh-10-839835-t001.jpg (1146×1441) (frontiersin.org)
2 UNFPA Kenya | UNFPA leads call for greater investments in screening and prevention of reproductive cancers at first-ever National Cancer Summit
3 The Problems and Needs of Patients Diagnosed with Cancer and Their Caregivers - PMC (nih.gov)