Building political support to fight cancer

Hildrun SundsethECPC Head of EU Policy

Cancer is Everyone’s Concern• Cancer remains a major contributor to the burden of

disease in Europe• The number of cancer cases in Europe continue to rise

each year • The cost in human, social and economic terms is

enormous

Cancer Care: Complex and Expensive

Need for sustained investment• Human resources• Physical structures • Knowledge resources• Social resources• Research

Present Situation• Health care in many EU countries is fragmented• Inefficiencies, bureaucracy, lack of co-ordination, vested

interests• Primary/secondary care, many professional disciplines,

stakeholders and institutions • Health care reform may lead to more fragmentation,

under-serving the people most in need • Lack of strategic approach to cancer

The Battle Plan: Comprehensive Strategy and united Actors

• Common comprehensive plan/strategy• Allies and experts• Ability to present a united front• Mobilise all of society• EU Task force to guide, collaborate and

coordinate

The Battle Plan• Invest in primary prevention

– Ban smoking in public places– Reduce life-style risk factors – Create clean environments

• Secondary prevention– Implement evidence and population-based screening programmes

• Integrated cancer control centered on the patient– Diagnose early, refer quickly, treatment plan, – Work in Multi-disciplinary teams, provide psycho-social care

• Invest in Research

The EU level - Strategic• Develop coherent European measures that complement national

policies• Integrate health in all policies - get rid of silo mentality of institutions• Coordinate and share best practice • Develop evidence based policies and guidelines• Fund research on cancer epidemiology, detection, diagnosis,

treatment, palliative care and psycho-social care, translational research and rare cancers

• European Centres of Excellence/Reference

Making Cancer a Priority• Europe against Cancer Programme ended 2002• Council Recommendation on Cancer Screening 2003• EU new Health Strategy - Prevention• MEPs against Cancer started in 2005• MAC Statement and EP Written Declaration• European Parliament Resolution• Slovenian EU Presidency initiative

MAC Members

MAC Members

Caroline Lucas

Fiona Hall Prof. Antonios Trakatellis

Milan Cabrnoch Marian Harkin Irena Belohorska Franςoise Grossetête Jan Olbrycht

Jorgo Chatzimarkakis

Linda McAvan

MAC Members

Miroslav Ouzky Jaroslav Zvěřina Edite Estrela Glenis Willmot Jolanta Dickute Colm Burke Marios Matsakis Christel Schaldemose

D. Roth-Behrendt Alexander Radwan Satu Hassi Magor Csibi Elisabeth Morin Ingo Friedrich Ilda Figueiredo Dragos Florin David

Title

• Text

? Cancer patientsare waiting...

June 2008

Si.nergy for Europe

Thank you Slovenia Thank you All