Illustrative stock photo (source: Photo by Olga Kononenko on Unsplash)
Health Minister Marek Krajčí (OĽaNO) has said improving cancer prevention and treatment in Slovakia will be a priority for his ministry as the country tops European mortality rates for the disease.
Speaking to patient groups at a special conference on oncology in Slovakia at the Health Ministry on June 26, Krajčí said he wanted more done to ensure lives are saved and cancer patients get better treatment.
“This area [oncology] is a priority for me. It has been overlooked for a long time and not been given the attention it should,” Krajčí told the media after the meeting.
Underlining what he called the three pillars of oncological care – prevention, treatment and palliative care – he outlined plans to make it easier for proven effective medicines to come onto the Slovak market as well as setting out plans to introduce clear regulations for the approval and use of treatments in exceptional circumstances.
The ministry said it was also working with the Labour Ministry to prepare legislation on long-term and palliative care.
“Our primary aim is to improve or at least maintain the quality of life for such people and ensure that they can remain in their natural or community environment as long as possible,” said Andrea Škripeková, general director of the health section of the Health Ministry after the meeting.
Slovakia top of mortality table
The meeting with patients’ groups comes as Slovakia’s cancer mortality rate outstrips other European nations.
