Efficiency hub

Lung cancer is the fourth most common cancer in Estonia and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths. To address this issue and the associated healthcare costs, Estonia is implementing a national screening programme, focused on detecting lung cancer earlier. During its pilot phase, the programme achieved up to 80% participation among eligible individuals by embedding enrolment within primary care.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in Canada; in Alberta, this is largely due to late-stage diagnosis. Systemic gaps, including delays in specialist referrals and limited resources in rural areas, result in poorer outcomes, with some people waiting a median of 105 days for surgery. The Alberta Thoracic Oncology Programme (ATOP) uses coordinated teams and referral innovations, including radiologist-initiated and automated referrals, to cut referral wait times (from about 24 days to under 5 days) without reducing care quality.

Cancer’s wide-ranging impact on Sri Lankans—33,000 of whom were diagnosed in 2022—highlights the need to overcome fragmented services and limited holistic care, as the country shifts toward a more people-centred approach that improves treatment adherence, disease management, and overall quality and efficiency of care.

Launched in 2021 by Pancreatic Cancer Europe, the PancreOS project is creating a pan-European network of linked pancreatic cancer registries to improve understanding, diagnosis and treatment, enabling comprehensive data analysis that can drive better health outcomes and inform evidence-based clinical and policy decisions.

Health disparities hinder access to cancer care across the globe, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Patient navigation denotes an approach where people are provided with one-on-one support, guidance, advocacy and education to guide them through the care continuum. Recognising the importance of patient navigation and its capacity to help address health disparities, the American Cancer Society set up the Building Expertise, Advocacy, and Capacity for Oncology Navigation (BEACON) initiative.

Ireland provides cancer care and Systemic Anti-Cancer Therapy (SACT) at centres across the country, but administration of care can be hindered by a lack of access to patient clinical information, resulting in delays to care and an increase in SACT administration errors. Clinicians recognised the negative impact of limited information-sharing, and engaged policymakers to include a National Electronic Prescribing System in the National Cancer Strategy.

Citizens of Qatar have universal health coverage, with 70–100% of cancer treatments being covered by the government. Some innovative cancer treatments, such as precision medicine, are not covered, meaning patients are not reimbursed for these treatment costs and thus risking financial toxicity. To combat this, the Qatar Cancer Society (QCS) offers financial assistance to people paying out of pocket for cancer treatments.

While childhood cancer survival rates are increasing in Europe, they remain low in Lithuania – partially due to a lack of innovative research in the country. To combat this, the Twinning in Research and Education to improve survival in Childhood Solid Tumours in Lithuania (TREL) project was initiated by the European Commission.

Cancer rates are rising in South-East Asia, but comprehensive access to, and coverage for, cancer care remains low. This is partially attributed to a lack of data on the impact of cancer to create evidence-based policy. The ASEAN Costs in Oncology (ACTION) study was initiated in 2011 by The George Institute for Global Health to address these gaps in data.