In a big win for Ugandan science, President Yoweri Museveni has praised a local scientist, Dr. Mathias Magoola, for making history. Dr. Magoola is the first African scientist to get a patent from the United States for a new cancer treatment.
The news was announced during a meeting at State House, Entebbe. Dr. Magoola, who owns Dei BioPharma Ltd, shared the details of his invention and his big plans to make life-saving medicine right here in Uganda.
According to Dr. Magoola, the United States Patent and Trademark Office officially gave him the patent on February 6, 2025. He explained that his treatment uses a special method that finds and destroys the bad genes that cause cancer. Unlike other cancer treatments, this new one is very precise; it only attacks the cancer cells and leaves the healthy ones alone. This means fewer side effects and a lower cost.
“This new invention is the first cancer treatment to use a special protein to break up bad genes and stop them from fixing themselves, which then kills the cancer cells,” Dr. Magoola explained.
President Museveni called the invention a “major milestone” for Uganda. He said it’s not just a win for the country, but a big contribution to the whole world. The President also said that Dr. Magoola’s work also has solutions for other diseases like HIV and sickle cell.
Dr. Magoola said the medicine is ready to be tested on people, and all the plans for making it are ready. He will soon send the paperwork to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to get approval. The human trials are expected to start before the end of the year.
The vision is big. The new medicine will be made at a modern factory in Matugga, near Kampala, which is set to become one of the biggest of its kind in Africa. With experts saying that global cancer cases could reach 35 million a year by 2030, Dr. Magoola’s treatment could be a game-changer, especially for countries that don’t have enough health care.
“This is not just a scientific breakthrough; it is a way to help remove cancer from the world,” he said.
Top government officials, including the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Dr. Monica Musenero, were also at the meeting to praise Dr. Magoola.
