The written declaration has been signed by more than half of the MEPs, which is the required number for a declaration to be adopted. In addition to cancer being the leading cause of death in Europe, one-third of all cancers are preventable and can be detected early and successfully treated.
The declaration calls on the Commission to do the following:
encourage research and innovation in the area of prevention and early detection of cancer
promote relevant information campaigns for the general public and for all healthcare providers
ensure that community legislation has incentives for industry and researchers alike in order to maintain ongoing research and guarantee new medicines and treatments to combat cancer
improve the dissemination of best practices to ensure that citizens have access to the best available treatments
MEPs are asking the Commission and Council to create a comprehensive strategy addressing the four basic cancer control factors:
prevention
early detection
diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up
palliative care
In addition, the declaration calls on the Commission to review relevant legislation and to update and modify the measures in conjunction with new scientific advances.
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