As Europe grapples with its growing cancer crisis, policymakers are being urged not to lose momentum, especially when it comes to women’s care. Cancer remains the second leading cause of death in the EU, and the number of cases is projected to rise by nearly 25% by 2040.
For women, the most pressing challenges, late diagnosis, unequal access to innovation, and gaps in data, are more urgent than ever.
Breast cancer is still the most diagnosed cancer among European women, leading to nearly 96,000 deaths each year. Yet while oncology has made significant scientific advances, particularly in targeted therapies and diagnostics, these improvements are not reaching all patients equally. Only 14 of 27 EU Member States meet the recommended screening coverage threshold of 70%, and access to new treatments still depends heavily on where a woman lives.
In response, the EU launched its Beating Cancer Plan, a strategy designed to reduce the cancer burden across Europe through prevention, early detection, diagnosis, treatment, and support for survivors.
Despite the plan’s ambitious goals, implementation by Member States still lags behind. With the next political cycle now underway, voices from across the oncology sector are calling for more coherent national strategies, better investment, and faster translation of innovation into real-world care.
One of those voices is Dr Michael Zaiac, Head of Medical Affairs, Oncology Europe at Daiichi Sankyo, who has decades of experience in cancer research and surgical practice. On the advocacy front, he is joined by Elena Nevado del Campo, a Member of the European Parliament from Spain (EPP, SANT Committee).
Nevado del Campo, a long-time advocate for health equity and gender-focused research, has been vocal about the need to bridge Europe’s east–west divide in women’s health outcomes.
Dr Zaiac and MEP Nevado del Campo spoke with The Brussels Times about where Europe stands, what’s working, and what still needs to change.
Dr Michael Zaiac, Head of Medical Affairs, Oncology Europe, Daiichi Sankyo
How would you describe the current state of cancer care for women across Europe?
Dr Zaiac: “Thanks to earlier detection and new targeted therapies, we can catch and treat many cancers much earlier. But the reality is that access is uneven. While average breast cancer survival across Europe is around 73% at five years, it drops sharply to just 58–60% in parts of Central and Eastern Europe, compared to 77–81% in Northern and Western Europe. Uptake of innovative treatments still often depends on a patient’s residence. The gap between potential care and actual care is widening, and often, women bear the brunt of the consequences.”
MEP Nevado del Campo: “In the last years we have taken important steps, but the reality is that cancer care for women continues to be very unequal in Europe. There are countries and regions where early diagnosis and access to advanced treatments are a consolidated reality, while in others there are still enormous delays. We need a more cohesive model, with a European vision and with a gender perspective, that guarantees that all women, wherever they live, receive the same quality of care.”
When people talk about ‘access,’ what are the most significant barriers in practice?
Dr Zaiac: “Two come to mind immediately. Firstly, time. After a medicine is authorised at the EU level, it can take over a year, or longer, before national systems approve it for reimbursement. In some Member States, like Latvia or Lithuania, fewer than one in three EMA-approved therapies are even filed for reimbursement.
Second, diagnostics. Without timely and equitable access to biomarker testing, the right treatment can’t be prescribed in the first place. Even when science advances, systems may not keep pace with it.”
MEP Nevado del Campo: “The most serious barriers continue to be territorial and social inequalities. It is not the same to live in a big city as in a rural area, not even in one state or another, and that creates differences in access to, for example, screenings, in waiting times or in proximity to specialised services. There are also many women who lack the necessary information to detect symptoms in time. The priority must be to strengthen prevention and bring resources closer to those who need them most.”
Are our research and data systems designed for women’s needs?
Dr Zaiac: “We’re making progress. Clinical trials are improving in terms of gender balance, but older women are still underrepresented, and results are rarely stratified by age, ethnicity, or other key factors. That creates blind spots: both in how we assess innovation and how we design policy. Promoting gender-aware clinical trials that reflect diverse populations and ensuring that studies accurately reflect the epidemiology of the diseases they seek to treat should be a central focus.
Real-world data could help close those gaps, but it must be collected and shared responsibly. Sex-disaggregated data must also become the norm, not the exception.”
MEP Nevado del Campo: “We have made progress, but still not enough. Women are not always well represented in research; they should take part more significantly in clinical trials, and data systems do not collect all the information we need to make fairer and more effective decisions. If we want to move towards personalised and equitable medicine, Europe must bet more decisively on biomedical research and on more complete and transparent data, more interoperable and coordinated. The European Health Data Space is a fundamental pillar of the European Union of Health and represents a great advance in the quality and effectiveness of healthcare, where women must have a specific section.”
MEP Elena Nevado del Campo
What would a better-functioning system look like on the ground?
Dr Zaiac: “Imagine a care pathway where screening, diagnosis, referral, and treatment move in sync. When systems are integrated and coordinated, time to therapy can be reduced by up to 30%.
By adding faster, more predictable reimbursement decisions and a framework for sharing real-world evidence across borders, we would be much closer to delivering on the promise of innovation. Importantly, that also means reducing inequality between and within Member States.”
MEP Nevado del Campo: “A better-functioning system would be one that offered all women a clear path: prevention, early diagnosis, treatment and follow-up, regardless of where they live or what their situation is. This requires coordination between services, more territorial equity and taking advantage of innovation at the service of patients. In the end, it is about making sure that no woman feels alone or left behind in such a difficult process.”
If you could move one thing forward tomorrow, what would it be?
Dr Zaiac: “Sustainable and transparent investment. Countries that invest more per capita in cancer care save more lives. This doesn’t just hinge on funds; it’s also about turning approvals into real access. We need better monitoring of how national decisions align with EU authorisations. Only with transparency can we identify bottlenecks and address them effectively.”
MEP Nevado del Campo: “Without funding, there is no implementation, which is the most important thing. Funding is the only way to strengthen prevention and early diagnosis programmes throughout Europe. Detecting cancer earlier not only saves lives, but it also reduces inequalities. If we combine prevention, innovation and research, we will be guaranteeing women fairer, faster and higher-quality care.”
Turning momentum into action
Policymakers now face an opportunity to retool Europe’s cancer strategy for long-term impact. The implementation of the European Health Data Space, the Joint Clinical Assessment under the new EU HTA Regulation, and continued investments under the Beating Cancer Plan are all tools that can bring more equitable outcomes—if used effectively.
For companies like Daiichi Sankyo, the path forward is one of partnership. Beyond research, the company is advocating for faster diagnostics, smarter data sharing, and policy frameworks that put patients at the centre.
“Innovation is only meaningful when it reaches every woman who needs it,” concluded Dr Zaiac. “By pairing science with smart policy, Europe can make that promise a reality.”
