New EU Plan against Cancer

4 de Febrero de 2021

 

 

#WorldCancerDay February 4th marks World Cancer Day – an initiative of the UICC (Union for International Cancer Control) uniting the world's population in the fight against cancer, a group of more than 200 different diseases characterized by abnormal cell growth. "We must do more to end the many tragedies that cancer inflicts. About one third of cancers can be prevented, while others are curable if diagnosed and treated early. And even when cancer is advanced, patients should benefit from palliative care."

The European Commission has presented a €4 billion Europe's Beating Cancer Plan to direct the attention of the European Union towards the characteristic factors of this disease in an innovative way, aiming at trying to adequately solve the set of problems which it entails: prevention, early detection, diagnosis, treatment and improvement of the quality of life of patients and survivors.

The development of vaccines against COVID-19 is showing that the advancement of new biotechnologies accompanied by an appropriate investment policy can provide positive results in a relatively short space of time. Until today, the production and distribution of a safe and effective vaccine required a period of more than ten years. It is possible that COVID-19 represents the beginning of a new era in the fight against cancer.

The Commission has announced the launch of a new Knowledge Centre on Cancer to coordinate scientific and technological activities on this matter at European level.

The new plan provides for special attention to children suffering from this disease through the "Helping Children with Cancer Initiative" and the establishment of a "Cancer Inequalities Registry" to identify imbalances between Member States and Regions in relation to the fight against cancer.

In the European Union, approximately 1.5 million deaths caused by this disease are registered each year, which makes it the second cause of mortality after cardiovascular diseases.