A new breeze in the fight against cancer – developing the LUKA and PETER programmes
This year's Week Against Cancer holds particular significance, as today marks the launch of a two-year collaboration between the Institute of Oncology Ljubljana, the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC/WHO) and Erasmus MC Rotterdam, one of the Netherlands' leading university clinical centres. The partnership is taking place under the umbrella of the European project "Improving Cancer Screening in Slovenia" (SG-REFORM TSI). The collaboration aims to test the feasibility and viability of introducing new pilot screening programmes for lung cancer and prostate cancer in Slovenia. By undertaking this initiative, Slovenia continues its tradition of working with international experts, as was the case with the establishment of the ZORA, DORA and SVIT programmes.
More than 17,000 people are diagnosed with cancer in Slovenia each year, which means an average of 47 people a day. For the past 15 years, the National Cancer Control Programme has been comprehensively addressing the burden of cancer through close cooperation between health policymakers, medical professionals, researchers, patients and NGOs.
"We can be justly proud of some of our achievements. Efforts to raise awareness of risk factors and the importance of preventive measures, legislation on tobacco and alcohol, and early detection of cancer and precancerous lesions have all contributed to a slower increase in cancer incidence, not taking into account the ageing of the population, and even to a declining trend in men," said Vesna Marinko, Director-General of the Public Health Directorate, in her address.
As underlined in the report on cancer (in)equalities published jointly by the European Commission and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), cancer care in Slovenia is accessible to more than 99% of the population, including access to the latest anticancer medicines. Multidisciplinary, integrated care for people with cancer is an established standard in Slovenia. Systematic monitoring of cancer care quality based on high-quality data, which is performed through the Cancer Registry of the Republic of Slovenia and expert groups within the National Cancer Control Programme, enables improvements in patient care.
"In recent years, we have made progress in developing comprehensive rehabilitation and specialist palliative care. We are working to increase patient participation in clinical trials, modernise treatments based on new scientific knowledge, and improve access to new anticancer medicines. As a result of these efforts, survival rates among cancer patients have improved, especially for the most common cancers," said Ms Marinko.
The national screening programmes for breast cancer (DORA), cervical cancer (ZORA) and colorectal cancer (SVIT) have contributed to the prevention and detection of the disease at an early stage, when treatment is most effective. Since the introduction of the ZORA screening programme, the incidence of cervical cancer has almost halved and Slovenia is on track to eliminate cervical cancer. Similar is true for colorectal cancer, where both incidence and mortality are significantly declining. The ZORA, DORA and SVIT screening programmes are also internationally recognised as examples of good practice.
"The Ministry of Health has always been a strong advocate for the introduction of organised, evidence-based screening programmes and has provided a supportive framework for their implementation, including through legislation. To keep Slovenia among the leading countries in Europe in the early detection of precancerous and cancerous lesions, we have already taken important steps towards introducing new screening programmes," Vesna Marinko emphasised and continued:
"I am very pleased that through research, pilot and collaborative projects, we are working well with renowned and excellent experts from prestigious international institutions such as IARC, Erasmus MC, the World Health Organization, and the European Commission, to develop the scientific foundations for the introduction of new screening programmes for the early detection of prostate and lung cancer. The experts who are with us today will provide more details."
"Let me conclude with a well-known truth, which has long been our guiding principle: prevention is better than cure. That is why I urge everyone to lead a healthy lifestyle and take part in life-saving screening programmes. In cooperation with leading international experts and with the support of the Ministry of Health, Slovenia is designing new programmes that offer new opportunities for early detection of cancer, providing new opportunities for patients," concluded Vesna Marinko.
