Veteran Yoruba actor Taiwo Hassan, popularly known as Ogogo, is battling stage-four cancer, according to his daughters, who have made an urgent public appeal for medical assistance.
The development became public after Lima and Kira Taiwo released separate emotional videos asking hospitals, cancer specialists and other medical professionals to help their father continue treatment.
The 66-year-old actor’s condition has reportedly deteriorated in recent weeks, with his daughters saying the family is struggling to find a medical facility willing or able to continue his treatment. Multiple Nigerian newspapers reported the family’s appeal on Tuesday.
Lima, who struggled to contain her emotions in her video, said the seriousness of her father’s condition only became clear to the family recently.
She said Ogogo could previously appear physically well despite what was happening with his health, making the eventual discovery of the severity of his illness particularly difficult for the family.
According to her, the immediate priority is not fundraising but finding doctors or a medical facility prepared to assess the actor and determine what treatment options remain available.
She appealed to Nigerians with contacts in the medical community to help connect the family with specialists who may be able to take up the case.
Kira made a similar appeal, revealing that her father’s cancer had reached stage four and saying the hospital treating him had informed the family that chemotherapy could no longer continue.
She said the family was willing to explore appropriate treatment possibilities as they searched for help.
The daughters did not publicly disclose the type of cancer Ogogo has, the hospital where he has been receiving treatment or the medical reason chemotherapy was reportedly stopped.
Why Ogogo’s cancer diagnosis needs specialist assessment
A stage-four diagnosis is serious, but the term alone does not determine what treatment a patient can or cannot receive.
The US National Cancer Institute explains that cancer treatment depends on factors including the type of cancer and how advanced it is. For cancers that have spread, treatment decisions can also depend on where the disease has spread, previous treatment and the patient’s general health.
This makes the family’s search for specialist medical assessment particularly important, especially because the specific cancer affecting the actor has not been publicly identified.
The daughters’ statements should therefore not be interpreted as establishing that no further medical options exist. Rather, they reflect what the family says it has been told about continuing chemotherapy at the facilities approached so far.
Kira became emotional as she described the pain her father was experiencing and his desire to remain alive.
She also acknowledged financial assistance the family had received during the actor’s treatment, while stressing the urgency of finding medical professionals who could advise them on the next course of action.
The appeal has generated concern because of Ogogo’s status as one of the most recognisable veterans of the Yoruba-language movie industry.
Born on October 31, 1959, in Ilaro, Ogun State, Hassan began his acting career in 1981 before eventually leaving his job as an automobile mechanic to concentrate fully on acting.
Over the decades, he has become known to generations of Yoruba movie viewers and has featured in productions including Omo Ghetto and Kunle Afolayan’s AnÃkúlápó, where he played Alaafin Ademuyiwa.
His daughters’ public appeal has now shifted attention away from the screen veteran’s long career to an urgent battle over his health.
For now, the family says its priority is securing further professional medical attention for Ogogo as he continues his fight against cancer.
