On 30 – 31 March, DiCE participated in the kick-off meeting of the TOGAS project held in Riga, Latvia.

TOGAS, which stands for TOwards GAstric Cancer Screening Implementation in the European Union, is a 36 months project co-founded by the European Union.

Currently, no effective screening method is available in Europe to prevent gastric cancer. TOGAS aims to provide the missing evidence-based knowledge that can be used to design, plan and implement appropriate gastric cancer prevention across the EU. The results from this project will aid policymakers in incorporating gastric cancer screening into healthcare priorities while balancing the effectiveness, feasibility, and acceptability with long-term potential adverse effects.

During the next three years, TOGAS will assess the state of play and the needs of member states and target populations in gastric cancer prevention, including information on ‘opportunistic’ screening initiatives organised in public and private settings. Through developing three pilot studies, each designed to address specific aspects of gastric cancer screening and early detection, TOGAS will assess the suitability and efficacy of various gastric cancer-screening methods for use in the EU. Finally, the consortium will guarantee the sustainability of the results through an effective dissemination strategy and coordination of the methodology with the approaches used within the EU, including with the European Guidelines and Quality Assurance Schemes.

The TOGAS consortium comprises 18 members and three associated partners representing higher educational institutions, research institutes and groups, clinics, patient organisations, and other relevant stakeholders from 12 EU member states. The leader of the TOGAS consortium is Latvia University.

DiCE’s role will be to lead the communication and dissemination activities to reach all the stakeholders involved in the design and implementation of screening programs for gastric cancer in Europe. We will also strictly collaborate with Thomas More University (Belgium) to comprehensively analyse the implementation possibilities of various gastric cancer screening modalities.

For more information about the project, please get in touch with Marianna Vitaloni via marianna@digestivecancers.eu, DiCE’s project lead for TOGAS.

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This project has received funding from the European Union programme EU4Health under Grant Agreement No 101101252 

Disclaimer:  

Funded by the European Union. However, the views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.