Page 115 - SAMRC AnnualReport 2025-26

P E R FOR M A NC E I N FOR M A T I ON

Key Milestones and Achievements

BODRU’s Third National Burden of Disease Study
aims to inform national health planning, policy
decisions, and resource allocation. Despite ongoing
challenges related to the quality and delayed
release of official mortality and population data, the
Unit utilised advanced statistical and demographic
methods during the reporting period to adjust
official datasets and incorporate alternative data
sources, particularly for injury-related mortality.
This enabled the production of burden-of-disease
estimates up to 2019. Robust methods were also
developed for estimating HIV/AIDS- and COVID- In the Eastern Cape, BODRU’s Cancer
19-related mortality, which will be incorporated into Registry strengthened collaboration with the
national estimates spanning 2000 – 2022 in 2026. National Cancer Registry and the Provincial
Department of Health.
The Unit’s Rapid Mortality Surveillance (RMS)
programme continues to provide empirical
estimates of mortality-based indicators used to for comprehensive, youth-friendly HIV prevention
monitor population health and assess progress models. These findings will be presented at the
against the National Department of Health’s 2026 International AIDS Conference in Brazil.
Strategic Plan and the National Development Plan.
The 2019/20 RMS Report documented the impact In the Eastern Cape, BODRU’s Cancer Registry
of SARS-CoV-2 on life expectancy, child mortality strengthened collaboration with the National
and adult mortality, while the latest report provides Cancer Registry and the Provincial Department
updated mortality profiles through to 2024 and of Health. The placement of a registrar from the
analyses trends since the pandemic. National Cancer Registry alongside BODRU staff
has improved clinical capacity, enhanced the
BODRU also generated evidence to enhance the accuracy of case identification and increased
delivery of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) services uptake of registry data.
for adolescents and young adults in KwaZulu-Natal.
Research findings indicated that fragmented and In response to rising food-borne illnesses and
non-integrated services may raise the risk of sexually poisoning cases, BODRU produced empirically
transmitted infections, unintended pregnancies, derived injury mortality profiles for adults and
and PrEP discontinuation, emphasising the need children for 2017 and 2020/21, highlighting

WHO AFRO Regional Immunisation Stakeholders' Meeting | 27 June 2025 | Kintélé, Republic of the Congo.

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