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NAIROBI, 15 November 2026 — In parts of the Somali community, cancer is a disease people struggle to name. Some refer to it simply as "the bad one."
For Abdisalam Guled, who says he survived two separate Stage IV cancer diagnoses while living with multiple sclerosis (MS), breaking that silence has become a personal mission.
"I'm a Somali, and in my community, cancer is taboo. It's a stigma. So people don't talk about it. They don't even name the cancer," Guled says.
He recalls being told he had just eight weeks to live following his first advanced cancer diagnosis. He later faced another Stage IV diagnosis.
Beyond the physical challenges, Guled struggled with how to communicate his diagnosis to his family, particularly his wife.
"I did not have anyone inspiring me before my illness. I didn't know how to handle it. I didn't know how to speak to my wife," he recalls.
That isolation eventually motivated him to speak publicly about his illness.
Through his online platform, Danguud Media Network, Guled has shared his experiences in eight videos, discussing cancer, multiple sclerosis and the psychological challenges of living with serious illness.
He says the videos have prompted calls and messages from people in Somalia, India, Egypt and Scandinavia seeking encouragement after receiving cancer diagnoses.
"I don't want other people to go through it. I can be the point of correction, the point of change, the point of the journey that changes the lives of others for better," he says.
Guled emphasises that he is not a medical professional and does not provide clinical advice. Instead, he shares lessons about hope, resilience and emotional support drawn from his own experiences.
During treatment, he developed a personal expression that helped him cope with uncertainty: "See you on the other side of the river."
Whenever his consultant asked how he was feeling, Guled would respond that he was still swimming but moving closer to the other side.
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"The words I was saying went to my mind. I digested them, and I believed them. That's what kept me going," he says.
For Guled, maintaining hope was an important part of coping with treatment, although he does not suggest that optimism can replace medical care.
His concerns extend beyond his personal experience to the wider stigma surrounding cancer in Somali communities.
He says some people initially seek spiritual interventions after diagnosis, sometimes delaying medical attention because they believe the disease is inevitably fatal.
Guled does not advocate abandoning religious faith. Rather, he believes spiritual support should complement, not replace, professional medical assessment and treatment.
He also raises concerns about what he perceives as a high number of throat cancer cases among some Somali communities, calling for further research into possible environmental and lifestyle factors.
His observations are based on personal experiences and conversations rather than established population-level evidence. Determining whether particular cancers are unusually common, and identifying their causes, would require reliable medical data and scientific investigation.
Guled believes governments, healthcare institutions and researchers should do more to improve cancer awareness, strengthen research and make medical services accessible.
"African leaders, African governments, authorities, health education institutions, research institutions and universities need to acknowledge how important it is to bring this deadly disease to light and give awareness to the community," he says.
Through his memoir, The Man Who Failed to Die, launched in Nairobi on 14 Nov. 2026, Guled hopes to reach more people confronting cancer, multiple sclerosis and other life-threatening conditions.
"Be hopeful, be enduring, be resilient and see a light. Let God do his job. If you're going to die, you're going to die, but while you are still here, do what you have to do," he says.
For Guled, sharing his experiences is a way of challenging the fear that surrounds cancer and helping others feel less isolated. His appeal to Somali communities is to speak openly about the disease, seek timely medical attention and support those living with it.