Port Moresby General Hospital (PMGH) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr. Paki Molumi, has confirmed that the hospital’s long-awaited Cancer Centre is expected to open in 2026, with services rolled out in phases to align with government funding.

“The Cancer Centre has been divided into phases to suit annual government funding.”

“We thank the Government of Papua New Guinea, through the last budget, for allocating K60 million for this project.”

He said PMGH is hopeful the funds will be released in the first quarter of 2026, allowing the centre to open in the second quarter of the year.

“We hope the government will release the funding in the first quarter of 2026 so that we can open this facility most likely in the second quarter.”

Dr. Molumi explained that once operational, the Cancer Centre will initially provide chemotherapy and radiotherapy services using modern technology.

“When we open the cancer service in the second quarter of 2026, we will be providing chemotherapy services.”

“We will also be providing radiotherapy services with one machine, which is the linear accelerator- not the cobalt machine. This is the latest technology.”

He added that the facility will be equipped with an LCM linear accelerator and will also offer brachytherapy services.

“We will be providing brachytherapy services for several cancer treatments.”

“Hopefully, we will also have a nuclear medicine department with PET scans installed so we can provide PET scan services in 2026.”

Looking to the future, Dr. Molumi said PMGH plans to expand services further between 2027 and 2028 with the addition of a second radiotherapy machine.

“In 2027 and 2028, we should be able to include the second cancer machine, which is the TrueBeam.”

He said even more advanced cancer treatments are planned in the years that follow.

“By 2029 and 2030, we should be able to introduce advanced radiotherapy treatment, immunotherapy, and bone marrow transplant services.”

“By 2030, we hope to offer the people of Papua New Guinea a one-stop shop for comprehensive cancer care.”

On patient numbers, Dr. Molumi said it is still too early to provide exact figures but noted the scale of cancer cases nationwide.

“I cannot give the numbers right now, but our statistics show there are about 300,000 new cancer cases a year,” he said, adding that PMGH expects to treat a significant portion of patients once the centre is operational.