Raising awareness during the European Week Against Cancer

Every year, the European Week Against Cancer takes place between 25 and 31 May. This event brings together patient advocacy groups, European policy-makers, and the general public to raise awareness about cancer prevention, screening, access to treatment and support for patients and people with a history of cancer.

The EU is fighting cancer with the Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan which was put forward in 2021. With this Plan the Commission seeks to improve prevention, early detection, treatment and care, as well as the quality of life of cancer patients and survivors. Backed by €4 billion in funding, a record number of concrete projects, actions and initiatives have been launched addressing each stage of this disease. These include among others:

• Establishing the Commission’s Knowledge Centre on Cancer, to share best practice implementation and issue guidelines for the design and roll-out of new actions
• Launching the European Cancer Imaging Initiative, to make anonymised cancer-related images accessible to healthcare professionals to improve personalised medicine
• Setting up the European Initiative to Understand Cancer, to support innovation and advancing the understanding of cancer mechanisms
• Proposing a Recommendation on vaccine-preventable cancers, to extend routine gender-neutral vaccination against human papillomaviruses (HPV) and vaccination against Hepatitis B
• Setting up the European cancer inequalities registry, to identify trends, disparities and inequalities between EU countries to allow for targeted investment and interventions
• Establishing an EU Network linking recognised National Comprehensive Cancer Centres to share capabilities and expertise across the EU
• Creating New Networks for Expertise for specific and challenging cancer conditions, to identify the solutions already rooted in the European oncology community

The Commission has also launched a new EU-supported Cancer Screening Scheme to improve access, quality and diagnostics of cancer screening. To promote the importance of early detection of cancer, the Commission has also started the #GetScreenedEU awareness raising campaign, which focuses on the fact that early detection through screening offers the best chance of treating cancer and increases treatment options. 

The EU has made huge strides when it comes to prevention through actions addressing key risk factors such as tobacco, diagnosis and treatment and improving quality of life. But there is much work left to do, to continue making a change, and to spread dignity and hope for all those touched by cancer.

For more information

A cancer plan for Europe

European Health Union

#GetScreenedEU campaign, with information about cancer screening programmes in EU countries

European Commission Initiatives on Breast and Colorectal Cancer

Cancer concerns us all - Statement by Commissioner Kyriakides at the occasion of the European Week Against Cancer