CANCER LEAGUES TAKE ACTION TO BEAT CANCER SOONER

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The Association of European Cancer Leagues (ECL) provides a unique platform as the only organisation with the mission of uniting at the European level, national and regional cancer leagues to achieve a cancer. To get one step closer to our mission of a Europe free of cancer, ECL unites, supports, and represents cancer leagues across the WHO European region. ECL members are cancer societies operating across the whole cancer continuum and patient pathway. From Iceland to Cyprus, cancer leagues contribute to preventing and fighting cancer by, amongst other things, raising awareness and educating people about cancer, investing in research, and providing support to cancer patients and their families during and after treatment. Our member leagues together employ more than 8,000 people and over 300,000 volunteers. They spend more than €750 million every year to fight cancer and represent over 570 million citizens. With the Lantern proposal, ECL aims to continue and strengthen our 40+ years of advocacy in cancer control to implement Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan. We will do this by working across a number of pillars – conveying and capacity building of our members; taking action to implement activities of the cancer plan; and communication about our work, cancer risk and control to the public and key stakeholders. In 2022, our activities will be structured around our key long-standing assets, all of which align and support Europe's Beating Cancer Plan: - Coordinating our Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Working Group (P&EDWG), Access to Medicines Task Force (A2M TF) and Patient Support Working Group (PSWG); - Enhancing the Youth Ambassadors for the European Code against Cancer (ECAC) to disseminate the ECAC messages to young people; - Promoting the annual European Week Against Cancer (EWAC) to bring the goals of Europe's Beating Cancer to the public; and - Providing the Secretariat for the MEPs Against Cancer (MAC) Interest Group at the European Parliament.