The government has set a goal to have basic diagnostic and treatment services up and running at the new 500‑bed multispecialty cancer hospital in Hulhumale’ by 2028, Minister of Health, Family and Welfare, Geela Ali has revealed.
Responding to a question from Galolhu North MP Mohamed Ibrahim in Parliament on 23 June about the start date of the long‑awaited cancer hospital, Minister Geela said the project is now in various stages of construction. The land for the facility has been allocated from the second phase of Hulhumale’, and the hospital will include a dedicated 25‑bed cancer treatment unit alongside multispecialty services for cancer, maternal and child health.
“We are working to ensure that the most basic diagnostic tests and treatment can begin by 2028, with radiotherapy, chemotherapy, PET‑scan and other advanced services to follow,” she said.
The announcement comes amid rising cancer cases. In 2025 alone, 67 women and 53 men were registered as new cancer patients in the Maldives. To date, 5,755 patients have received treatment abroad through the universal health insurance scheme Aasandha, costing the government USD 24.3  million.
To ease immediate pressure, nine beds at Hulhumale’ Hospital and the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) have been reserved for cancer care. The Ministry also plans to roll out cancer services in Addu City, Haa Dhaalu Atoll, Lhaviyani Atoll, Raa Atoll and Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll, while mammography screening for breast cancer—one of the most common cancers in the country—is now available at five Regional Hospitals, Fuvahmulah City Hospital and Baa Atoll Hospital.
Internationally, 15 hospitals in India and two in Sri Lanka have been contracted under Aasandha to provide specialised cancer treatment for Maldivian patients.
Minister Geela added that a comprehensive study will be launched during this presidential term to investigate the underlying causes of cancer in the Maldives, supplementing the existing cancer registry with more detailed epidemiological data.