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EUROPEAN COMMISSION
HEALTH AND CONSUMERS DIRECTORATE-GENERAL
Public Health and Risk Assessment
Health information
Luxembourg, November 2008
Action against cancer: European platform
Brainstorming workshop organised by DG SANCO on the European Platform on
Cancer
Luxembourg, 29 October 2008, room JMO M2
Minutes of the meeting
1. Welcome and Introduction
Participants were welcomed to the brainstorming workshop on Action against cancer:
European platform by the chairman, Mr Nick Fahy, Head of Health Information Unit
(SANCO - C2). A list of participants is enclosed (see Annex I). The aim of the meeting was
an informal exchange of views about possible areas and directions to be considered within the
framework of the European Commission's planned future initiative in the area of cancer. It
was agreed at the beginning of the meeting that views expressed will be summarized in the
minutes, but not attributed to individual speakers.
There were two main topics of discussion: how to structure the multi-stakeholder platform in
the way to assure continuous action in the area of cancer prevention and control, and the
immediate areas and actions to be addressed within the framework of the initiative.
The Commission identified four main areas of future actions that were broadly confirmed
through the discussions:
1. Health information, collection and analysis of comparable data, and evidence to support
learning and sharing of knowledge;
2. Primary prevention;
3. Identification and promotion of good practice in cancer-related healthcare;
4. Cancer Research.
As an introduction to the four main areas, colleagues from different Commission services
gave the following presentations: DG SANCO – C6 Unit (tobacco legislation); DG EMPL –
F4 Unit (occupational health and safety); DG ENTR – C1 Unit (general and sectoral
accreditation); DG RTD - F2 Unit (cancer research in the EU Framework Programmes for
RTD) and DG SANCO - C4 Unit (existing platforms on alcohol and