The Ministry of Health's actions for the prevention and treatment of cancer was presented today by Minister Thanos Plevris at an event for the European Plan to Fight Cancer at the Office of the European Parliament in Athens.
According to Plevris, Proto Thema reported, the messages from the first results of the "Fofi Gennimata" program for free mammograms are encouraging.
“Of the 80,000 mammograms performed to date, 4,700 women had early-stage findings. This gives them the opportunity of early treatment," he said.
At the same time, the "Spyros Doxiadis" program includes preventive programs for colon and cervical cancer, aimed at their early detection.
"For the first time, Greece has a health prevention program in the sense that the State prepares a comprehensive programs of preventive exams and looks for the citizen. Until now, the citizen went to the doctor and asked to have examinations that are of course reimbursed by EOPYY," Plevris said.
And he added that, "through the institution of the personal doctor, we aspire to make Prevention permanent as a mindset and thus to gradually structure the patient's medical file. This way we will be able to prevent others and treat cancer and other serious diseases in time."
The Minister of Health also reminded that cancer in particular can be prevented through vaccination.
"We have expanded HPV vaccination to boys and girls, joining the global effort to eliminate this virus over the next decade," he said.
The home care program for oncology patients and then for other serious chronic diseases is also at a mature stage.
While with the utilisation of funds from the Recovery Fund, an organised network of palliative care must be built, which unfortunately for now in Greece is left to individual efforts of non-governmental organisations.
More and coordinated action is needed in the field of Patient Registries and especially in the implementation of the National Neoplasm Registry. The latter will contribute to the accurate recording of the number of oncology patients and, by extension, their needs in treatments and health care.
Structural measures for medicine
Especially for patient access to innovative treatments, the Minister of Health announced the implementation of structural and not restrictive measures for medicine in 2023.
"When an innovative treatment comes to our country it will be evaluated by the competent committee focusing on which patients will benefit the most," said Plevris.
"The pharmaceutical company will then come in to negotiate the price of the drug and the agreed final amount will be budgeted for the drug. This gives companies an incentive to bring innovative treatments to Greece," added the minister.
And he concluded by saying that, “health should not be approached in financial terms."
"Just as the European Union puts the prevention and treatment of cancer as a first priority, so Greece, through strengthened Primary Health Care and the new culture of prevention, wants to offer Greeks the best possible care".
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