Together with nearly 200 participants, DiCE joined the online launch of Country Cancer Profiles on the European Cancer Inequalities Registry.

The European Commission hopes that the Country Cancer Profiles will act as a tool that drives change by highlighting where inequalities in cancer prevention and care lie, and identifying areas of action for investment and policy action.

The OECD representative outlined critical findings from the data gathered to date:

• Persisting gender inequalities with higher mortality rates among men; Nordic countries rank better than the rest of Europe.
• Interventions to reduce socio-economic inequalities in cancer mortality should focus on low-educated people.
• Smoking is one of the most significant preventable risk factors for cancer.
• Access to oncology medicines remains unequal across EU countries, with Denmark and Germany having the largest number of products/indications approved and covered.

Furthermore, it was confirmed that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted cancer care across Europe.

The European Commission highlighted that it is not merely the Beating Cancer Plan which aims to reduce inequalities. Through a comprehensive approach in other initiatives, the European Commission strives to address inequalities in access to treatments; for instance, in the forthcoming overhaul of the pharmaceutical legislation planned for March 2023.

You can download your country profile here.