OriON Joint Action highlighted at EU Sub-group on Cancer meeting

On 14 May 2025, the Sub-group on Cancer under the Commission Expert Group on Public Health met online, bringing together representatives from 18 EU Member States (BG, DK, EE, FR, DE, HU, IT, LV, LT, LU, MT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SI, ES, SE) and Norway, alongside several Commission services and agencies.

The meeting featured a presentation of OriON Joint Action Work Package 5, Analysis of the Developments in National Cancer Control Programmes. The preliminary results were shared by JA OriON representatives from the National Institute of Public Health of the Republic of Slovenia (Assist. Prof. Marjetka Jelenc, MD, PhD) and the Foundation for the Promotion of Health and Biomedical Research of the Valencian Community-Fisabio (Ana Molina Barcelo, PhD).

Preliminary results from a survey covering 34 countries showed:

• Gaps in National Cancer Control Programmes (NCCPs): financing, resources, monitoring of cancer burden, governance, rehabilitation, patient empowerment and survivorship.
• Room for improvement: health promotion, access to innovative treatments, palliative and end-of-life care, and research.

An equity impact assessment was conducted during the study. They presented specific aspects that were assessed, including access to prevention, screening and treatment, health literacy, participation and social inclusion, and equity impact assessments and trainings.

The conclusion underlined the need to strengthen equity considerations in all national cancer policies, especially in the area of survivorship, and to take into account determinants going beyond age, gender and territory.