Source: EURLEX
Language: en
Format: md

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# 92002E1784

**WRITTEN QUESTION E-1784/02 by Nelly Maes (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Cervical cancer screening in the EU.** 
  
*Official Journal 052 E , 06/03/2003 P. 0101 - 0101*

  

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1784/02

by Nelly Maes (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(24 June 2002)

Subject: Cervical cancer screening in the EU

The new Health Action Plan no longer makes any mention of SANCO (Directorate-General for Health and Consumer Protection) and no longer lists cancer screening among the objectives. Old objectives have simply been scrapped.

How is cancer screening to be incorporated into this new and more horizontal approach? How will the Commission ensure that existing programmes can be continued in the future?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(20 August 2002)

Although the new public health action plan does not explicitly mention as a separate objective cervical cancer screening, or, in other words, secondary prevention of cervical cancer mortality by screening, it is clear that cancer including cervical cancer is one of the major diseases, which is addressed by the heading of section 3. of the action plan's annex: To promote Health and Prevent Disease through Action on Health Determinants across all Community Policies and Activities(1) in conjunction with objectives 1.2 and 1.7 of section 1. of the action plan's annex.

Nevertheless, cervical cancer screening is only one example of early detection of disease. Thus the aim under the new public health action plan will be to exploit best practice developed under the existing public health programmes for several diseases, e.g. breast cancer, to improve and extend screening at European level for diseases wherever possible.

(1) PE-CONS 3627/02.

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