Women and Cancer

darft image for women and cancer pageEvery year more than 1.2 women are diagnosed with cancer in the European Union, with nearly 600,000 losing their lives. As of now, the European Cancer Information System (ECIS) reports that 12 million women in Europe are living with cancer.

The policy challenges connected to this are wide, multifaceted and pressing. The European Cancer Organisation, its members and community want to play a role in addressing such challenges, and we invite your contributions!

As part of ECO’s Inequalities Network, the Women and Cancer workstream looks to address the unique inequities faced by women who experience a cancer diagnosis, women working in the cancer sector, and women who provide care to persons with cancer. The workstream is bringing together stakeholders from across the European cancer community and beyond to promote issues such as:

  • More effective and gender-sensitive approaches to cancer prevention, including fair and equal access to HPV vaccination;
  • High performance cancer screening for women in all European countries;
  • Improving response to gender-related psychological and sexual hardships;
  • Combatting financial toxicity and workplace discrimination associated to the female experience of cancer;
  • Acknowledging the essential societal and economical role played by women caregivers; and,
  • Supporting female empowerment in cancer care, research , policy and governance.

In developing this workstream we are inviting contributions, perspectives and experience from the wide range of persons touched by cancer, working in the cancer sector and beyond. It will support other ECO Networks where appropriate.

Women and Cancer: More than 12 million reasons for action

An estimated 12 million women in Europe are currently living with cancer. Another 1.2 million women are diagnosed with the disease each year – and nearly 600,000 are dying from it annually.  

Enough is enough! 

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Marking European Gender Equality Week 2024, the European Cancer Organisation (ECO) published a landmark report: Women and Cancer: More than 12 million reasons for action! 

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To connect further with this workstream and find out more please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

Workstream Co-Chairs

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Explore how cancer affects women’s lives beyond diagnosis; from prevention and fertility to caregiving and workplace equality, a woman confronting cancer juggles so much more.

As part of shaping the next EU Gender Equality Strategy, ECO advocates five key rights to address these various challenges.

Find out more here.

Every year, 600,000 women in the European Union lose their lives to cancers that could be prevented, detected earlier, or treated more effectively.

Join leading experts, patient advocates, and policymakers at our upcoming Community 365 Roundtable to tackle the urgent gaps in prevention, care, and support for women affected by cancer.

Together, we’ll explore actionable solutions to improve survival, reduce inequalities, and elevate women’s voices in cancer policy.

Register now!

Marking Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2025, ESMO Calls for Increasing Awareness of the Cancer Risks Posed by Alcohol & the Development of Robust Policy Measures to Prevent Breast Cancer Cases

To mark the occasion of the 2025 edition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, ESMO together with the members of the European Health Alliance on Alcohol (EHAA) launched a statement to raise awareness of the cancer risks linked to alcohol and call for robust policy measures to help prevent breast cancer cases attributable to alcohol. The full statement can be accessed here.