More than half a hundred organizations in the field of oncology and healthcare, with the Asociación Española Contra el Cáncer (AECC) at the forefront, have promoted the "Manifiesto de todos contra el cáncer" to demand that political formations make cancer a central place in the healthcare agenda of the next legislative term, especially strengthening its prevention, the quality of care, and the drive for research.
Presented this Tuesday, the document sets out five lines of action with specific proposals to continue moving forward against the disease and to ensure that any patient receives the same response, regardless of the type of tumor, the stage they are in, or the autonomous community where they live.
The axes of the manifesto are structured around greater prevention to reduce the number of diagnoses; ensuring comprehensive and humanized care in all stages of the disease; improving the conditions of people with cancer of working age; providing stable and increasing funding for cancer research; and ensuring access, interoperability, and responsible use of cancer-related data.
The president of the AECC, Ramón Reyes, has emphasized that cancer is the leading cause of death in Spain, which justifies placing it as a "number one public health priority", not only ahead of the general elections of November 29, but throughout the entire next legislative term.
The organization recalls that four out of every ten tumors could be avoided by acting on the major risk factors. For this reason, the manifesto calls for strengthening protection policies, especially in childhood and adolescence, against tobacco and nicotine, identified as the main risk factor.
Among the measures proposed is the updating of regulations on tobacco products and their derivatives, aligning the regulation of new devices with that of conventional tobacco, setting limits on nicotine doses, expanding smoke- and aerosol-free spaces, prohibiting single-use e-cigarettes, increasing taxation, and implementing plain packaging.
The text also underscores the urgency of having an interoperable information system for screening programs, with homogeneous and high-quality data that facilitate its evaluation and continuous improvement.
As for comprehensive care, the manifesto proposes reviewing the regulations to introduce common indicators for the entire oncology process, establish progressive guarantees, publish waiting lists transparently, and activate corrective measures when delays occur.
PATIENTS OF WORKING AGE
Thirty-seven percent of new cancer diagnoses occur in people of working age. Of these, 45 percent say they have difficulties carrying out their job and 21 percent of those who have had to change their working situation refer to dismissal or leaving the activity.
To respond to this reality, the manifesto proposes creating a specific situation of temporary incapacity for people with cancer, adjusted to the duration and particularities of oncology processes, which guarantees adequate economic protection, including unemployed people, the self-employed, and those who do not reach the ordinary periods of contribution, as well as recognition of the right to adapt the job when returning.
Regarding support for families of children with cancer, the document proposes reviewing the regulation of the leave and the CUME benefit in order to adapt them to the real and prolonged care needs that pediatric oncology treatments typically require.
The manifesto also directs attention to cancer survivors and their specific needs, calling for the implementation of a common framework for survivorship care, with personalized plans that take into account clinical follow-up, predictable sequelae, available resources, and health, psychological, social, and work needs, in addition to ensuring the detection and comprehensive care of sequelae.
SUSTAINED FUNDING FOR RESEARCH AND INNOVATION
With the aim of increasing survival and surpassing 70 percent by 2030, more than 50 entities insist that it is essential to have sustained, growing, stable, and sufficient funding for cancer research and innovation, and therefore call for the launch of a National Plan with multi-year funding.
Along with strengthening research, organizations demand that patients have equitable access to innovations and can participate in clinical trials. To reduce inequalities between territories, they propose publishing comparable indicators on availability, times, and effective access to treatments in each autonomous community.
The document also supports moving forward with the integration and responsible use of oncology data. To this end, it proposes consolidating a National Cancer Registry that provides updated and comparable information on incidence, mortality, survival, and prevalence.
According to the manifesto, integrating clinical information would also make it possible to strengthen continuity of care, facilitate safe access to data for authorized patients and professionals, and enhance both research and the evaluation of public policies.
Among the entities signing the manifesto are the Association against gastric cancer and gastrectomized patients (ACCGG), the Spanish Association of Lung Cancer Victims (AEACAP), the Spanish Association of Gastroenterology (AEG), the Association of Health Economics (AES), the Association of Women Affected by Ovarian and Gynecological Cancer (ASACO), the Spanish Association for Cancer Research (ASEICA), Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), the Head and Neck Association, the Association of Laryngectomized People-Huelva, the Spanish Association of Social Work and Health, the Association of Health Lawyers, and the Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer Association (AMOH).
Also have adhered the Asociación Oncológica Extremeña (AOEx), the Asociación para la Donación de Médula Ósea de Extremadura, the Asociación Gallega de Personas con Enfermedades Oncohematológicas (ASOTRAME), Cancer Patients Europe, the Comunidad Española de Pacientes con Mieloma Múltiple (CEMMP), Cris Contra el Cáncer, the Fundación FERO, the Fundación Blanca Morell, the Fundación Leucemia y Linfoma, the Fundación Mari Paz Jimenez Casado, the Fundación Más Que Ideas, the Fundación Sandra Ibarra, the Grupo Español de Cáncer de Pulmón (GECP), GEICAM, the Grupo de Expertos en Medicina Estética Oncológica (GEMEON), the Grupo Español de Terapias Inmuno-Biológicas en Cáncer (GETICA), the Grupo de Tratamiento de los Tumores Digestivos, the Grupo Español de Oncología Transversal y Tumores Huérfanos e Infrecuentes (GETTHI), the Grupo SOLTI and the Asociación para la Investigación del Cáncer de Pulmón en Mujeres (ICAPEM).
Likewise, they endorse the text the Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, the Instituto de Biomedicina de Sevilla, Nofumadores.org, Prevenció Informació Càncer Molins (PICAM), the Plataforma Juvenil de España, the Plataforma de Organizaciones de Pacientes (POP), the Red Española de Universidades Promotoras de Salud (REUPS), SCOUTS, the Sociedad Española de Enfermería Oncológica (SEEO), the Sociedad Española de Hematología y Hemoterapia (SEHH), the Sociedad Española de Hematología y Oncología Pediátricas (SEHOP), the Sociedad Española de Médicos de Atención Primaria (SEMERGEN), the Sociedad Española de Medicina de Familia y Comunitaria (Semfyc), the Sociedad Española de Médicos Generales y de Familia (SEMG), the Sociedad Española de Oncología Médica (SEOM), the Sociedad Española de Oncología Radioterápica (SEOR), the Grupo Español de Oncología Genitourinaria (SOGUG), the Grupo Español de Tumores de cabeza y Cuello (TTCC), Unoentrecienmil and the Vall d'Hebron Institut d'Oncologia (VHIO).