Widespread education and screening programmes for women over 50 must therefore be a high priority. Lung cancer, at one time far more prevalent among men, is now the sixth most frequent cancer in the world among women. Lung cancer is virtually impossible to detect early but is largely preventable. Persuading women to stop smoking, or better yet, never to start, would help Member States save thousands of lives and reduce the incidence, severity and high cost of smoking related illnesses. Over the last decade researchers have learned a great deal about the causes, prevention and management of osteoporosis, an underlying bone condition responsible for many of the hip, wrist and vertebral fractures in older women.
Osteoporosis is a particularly serious problem for Europe's ageing population.
Fractures are painful, disabling and costly, both in terms of quality of life and economics. Many patients with hip fractures never return to full function or good health. Although osteoporosis is the most common metabolic bone disorder and a major cause of illness and disability, neither women nor their health care providers are sufficiently well informed about the genetic, ethnic, hormonal, lifestyle and medical factors that play a part in osteoporosis. Osteoporosis can in many cases be prevented or mitigated. There are many diagnostic and treatment options, but they tend to be under-utilised.