The European Parliament Committee for the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) has called on the Commission to set up an EU cancer task force.
This is one of the recommendations in the amended draft Motion for a Resolution on combating cancer in the enlarged European Union adopted by the committee last month. It was almost unanimous with just one member voting against - 58 voted in favour and there were no abstentions.
The draft resolution:
- Calls on the Commission to set up an interinstitutional EU Cancer Task Force composed of members of the European Commission, the Council and the Parliament. The aim of the Task Force should be to collect and exchange best practices for prevention, screening and treatment of cancer;
- Urges Member States to implement statutory cancer registration with European standardised terminology, to support population-based evaluation of prevention, screening and treatment programmes and the comparability of data between Member States;
- Calls for a revision/update of the Recommendation on Cancer Screening (2003), and for better implementation of screening recommendations;
- Urges the Commission and Member States to ensure that cancer medicines are uniformly available to all patients who need them in all Member States;
- Calls for better information to cancer patients with regard to cancer screening and treatment options.
In addition, the amended draft resolution will include more on the reduction of lifestyle-related, occupational and environmental exposure to carcinogens. It will also encourage patient participation in the development of health policies.
The draft resolution is expected to be discussed and subsequently adopted by the European Parliament during its plenary session in Strasbourg next month.
