Background and Context: Health system management in many European countries has led to infrastructures that do not take a holistic view of cancer control. Recent global developments on NCDs since the 2011 UN High Level Meeting have given a renewed focus to national cancer planning and registration, but entrenched, fragmented structures are often barriers to demand for robust models of care with quality measures across all cancers.
Aim: GCS and UICC joined forces to establish a pan-European network of members to collate models of success, share recommendations and develop a common advocacy agenda to ensure national health structures and services respond to the dynamic demands of cancer care.
Strategy/Tactics: A stakeholder meeting identified a core group of organisations that worked together to identify building blocks for monitoring and improving cancer care. An initial think-piece was published to engage a broader set of stakeholders and consider new routes to facilitating rapid transfer of best practice across Europe, as well as securing political will to support national action. This was augmented by roundtables on special oncology topics with strong German data.
Programme/Policy Process: Necessary national structures were identified to define and develop a quality of care strategy and measures common to all health systems.
Outcomes/What was learned:National cancer plans are an important tool to manage the cancer burden and guide future interventions from an economic, social and medical perspective. Links to guidelines, certification, caregiver groups and patients were common themes. Patient-reported outcomes across the care continuum are needed – particularly addressing special groups e.g. the elderly. Evidence-based quality indicators with peer-review certification process, quality review, and building trust and transparency, are key to embedding new knowledge into current practice. Cases studies will be used to illustrate that Cancer Centres are a key instrument for assessment of patient needs, and related psychosocial issues.