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S
IOPE will steer and coordinate the effective
implementation
of this Strategic Plan,
together with the European Clinical Trial
Groups (ECTGs) and the National Paediatric
Haematology Oncology Societies (NAPHOS)
in close cooperation with the parents,
patients, and survivors’ advocates from the
Europe Regional Committee of Childhood
Cancer International (CCI).
Cross-tumour platforms and projects
will
facilitate this implementation: a Clinical Trial
Facilitating (CTF) platform to ease setting
up of clinical trials within the new EU Clinical
Trial Regulation, the PICORET (Population
Improvement in Childhood cancer Outcomes
through Research, Evaluation and Training)
outcome research project to evaluate and
monitor progress in childhood cancer survival
and therapy effectiveness, the QUARTET
(Quality and Excellence in Radiotherapy and
Imaging for Children and Adolescents with
Cancer across Europe in Clinical Trials) project
for quality assurance in radiation therapy, the
CDDF-SIOPE-ITCC multi-stakeholder platform
to improve oncology drug development
for children and adolescents, and the
‘Ethics, Social Science and Humanities’
project to address the ethical aspects
related to paediatric cancer. An efficient
IT infrastructure to support e-Health and
research will be developed, and a European
Reference Network for paediatric patients
with cancer will be created to facilitate cross-
border healthcare and access to expertise.
The ‘Oncopolicy’ programme will ensure that
the needs of young people are well taken
into account into all EU policy initiatives in
the field of health and research. Finally, the
‘Education and Training’ programme will
ensure an adequate training to paediatric
oncology health professionals.
Partnerships
will be strengthened with
patients, parents and survivors’ advocates,
adult oncologists as well as paediatric
oncologists fromother continents. ‘Intelligent
and transparent’ public-private partnerships,
recognizing the specificities of paediatric
haematology-oncology, will be established
with industry. The Strategic Plan’s projects
and structures will be funded through
European and national grants, as well as by
charities and industry.
In conclusion, as a result of several initiatives
to involve all stakeholders and ensure that
all their points of view would be taken into
account in the document, this long-term
sustainable Strategic Plan has achieved a
broadconsensus, andwill serveas a
‘European
Cancer Plan for Children and Adolescents’.
Gilles Vassal
, SIOPE President and ENCCA
Activity Coordinator
Ruth Ladenstein
, SIOPE Board Member and
ENCCA Coordinator
Martin Schrappe
, SIOPE President-Elect and
ENCCA Activity Coordinator
Kathy Pritchard-Jones
, SIOPE Board Member
and ENCCA Activity Coordinator
7
A EUROPEAN CANCER PLAN FOR CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS