Bulgaria is the only country in the EU to show an increase in cancer mortality. This transpired Wednesday as the European Commission and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) presented the first country profiles on cancer within the European Cancer Inequalities Registry for all EU Member States, Norway and Iceland. The reports’ release came shortly before World Cancer Day, February 4.
With 26% death rate, cancer is the second cause of death in the whole EU after cardiovascular disease. Another important fact is that lung cancer remains the most common cause of death from cancer. There are also large inequalities in mortality among different EU member-states.
Background
For the first submission on February 1, 2023, a total of 29 country cancer profiles (EU27, Iceland and Norway) were produced with the help of the OECD. The profiles are a tool to identify inequalities in cancer prevention and care. They highlight the main achievements, challenges and disparities within each country and compare the findings for individual countries with the situation in the EU as a whole. This supports policy makers and guides investments and interventions at regional, national and European level within the European Cancer Plan.
For more information, see the communication here.
