7.D. Workshop: Optimal development and interactions between cancer policy tools at the EU and national level
Authors:   Organised by: EPHA-HSR, EUPHA-CHR,   Chair persons: Johan Hansen (EUPHA-HSR), Julian Mamo (EUPHA-CHR)
Published: October 2021

Cancer planning is a public health activity that has taken an important place in the health policy arena over the past 35 years. Cancer plans, programmes and strategies were mostly presenting with the challenges of inadequate comprehensiveness, uncertainties on implementation, insufficient resources and missing evaluation. EU launched its Europe Against Cancer Programme in 1985 and it was running successfully until 2003, falling short of the date of the biggest enlargement of the EU. The revival of the EU activities followed with Slovenia's Presidency to the Council of the EU bringing cancer back to the top of the agenda. This resulted in triggering several activities that strongly involved Member States (MSs):

Establishment of the European Partnership for Action Against Cancer. EC call on the MSs to develop their national cancer control programmes (NCCPs) by 2013. Launch of several joint actions (JAs) - EPAAC, CanCon, JARC, iPAAC, policy projects to support the development of cancer policy both in MSs as well as in the EU Launch of the European Reference Networks (ERNs)

All of these activities raised the expectations that the EU should take a more important role in steering activities in cancer control across the entire Union. Adoption of the Europe's Beating Cancer Plan (EBCP) marks a special moment in EU activities in cancer policy. It is the first time there is a comprehensive agenda on cancer, which includes both the classical preventative activities as well as cancer care and the challenges related to survivorship. The workshop is intended to present the main flagships in the EBCP, how they are to be implemented at the EU level and at the level of the MSs. Special reflection will be given to the role of research in cancer at all aspects of the disease. As research and innovation are an important component of the EBCP, the Mission on Cancer by DG RTD is prepared in close alignment and with the Mission Board acting as an independent advisory board to the EBCP, proposing a set of research and other policy actions and assist in its implementation. During the workshop, an assessment will be presented on how the recommendations of the work of the Mission on Cancer are incorporated into the EBCP. Finally, there will be a moderated discussion with the panellists and the audience on:

what will be the challenges of developing national cancer policy priorities in response to the flagships of the EBCP, how these actions are going to be reflected in NCCPs, how can cancer policy development become a model for other NCDs.

Participants are expected to gain more insight into the key policy priorities and public health actions related to the EBCP, how they are going to be supported by the MSs and what should be jointly undertaken to tackle the challenges related to the full implementation of EBCP across the EU.

Key messages

Cancer policy needs to be developed at the EU and country levels in a coordinative process. Comprehensiveness is necessary in addressing all public health challenges of the 21st century.