Wallonia releases more than 2 million euros for screening of three types of cancer

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The Walloon government has adopted a decree aimed at perpetuating screening programs for colorectal, breast and cervical cancer on the proposal of the Walloon Minister of Health, Christie Morreale, the latter’s office said on Sunday. A total budget of nearly 2,300,000 euros is dedicated to the establishment of these three medicine programs in 2024.

The main objective of these programs is to detect the disease early and free of charge. The decree aims to establish the long-term organization of these programs, via the indefinite approval of preventive medicine centers responsible for their operationalization, specifies the cabinet.

“The objective pursued here is to perpetuate screening programs in Wallonia, to remind the population of their importance, and to improve their effectiveness.“, explains the minister, quoted in the press release.

In Belgium, 74,249 new cancer diagnoses (except non-melanoma skin cancer) were made in 2022, of which 40,335 were diagnosed in men and 33,914 in women, details the minister’s office. The most frequently diagnosed cancers remain prostate cancer in men (12,732), breast cancer in women (10,879), lung cancer (8,983) and colorectal cancer (7,327).

The earlier the disease is detected, the higher the chances of recovery. There is a 90% chance of recovery in the event of early detection of colorectal cancer and breast cancer is curable in 9 out of 10 cases if it is detected early, the firm’s press release further notes.

cancer screening