eCAN+
Cancer is one of the most pressing issues that poses a large burden on society, governments, and healthcare systems. It is the second leading cause of mortality in most EU Member States after cardiovascular disease. Without strong action, cancer incidence in Europe is expected to increase by a fifth by 2040, which translates into more than 5 million new cancer cases. The rising use of telemedicine in healthcare offers a new window of opportunity for responding to population health crises, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This Joint Action (JA) called ‘enhancing digital capabilities of cancer centers in Europe to improve prevention and care’ (eCAN Plus) aims to bring the benefits of digital health to all citizens, patients and health care professionals (HCPs) to improve cancer prevention and care across Europe.
The Joint Action ‘Enhancing digital capabilities of cancer centres in Europe to improve prevention and care’ (eCAN Plus) is a flagship EU project in digital oncology and cross-border health data exchange. Its goal is to make the benefits of digital health accessible to all citizens, patients and healthcare professionals.
The initiative involves 81 organisations from 23 European countries. Together, they seek to address the increasing incidence of cancer, expected to rise by 20% by 2040. As part of this effort and building on the eCAN Joint Action’s experience (2022-2024), this project involves testing and piloting the safe and secure integration of digital tools and health data in order to improve the use and re-use of health data. The growing adoption of telemedicine tools and the European Health Data Space’s legal framework provide the foundation for implementing these mechanisms.
Through comprehensive mapping of current scenarios, training programmes, use cases, and pilots, eCAN Plus also intends to strengthen collaboration among cancer centres and enhance the digital skills of healthcare professionals. Moreover, by gathering and sharing knowledge from participating countries, eCAN Plus expects to develop recommendations and highlight best practices along the cancer care pathway, thereby improving patients’ access to effective healthcare.
The general aim of this JA is to build on the experiences from the JA eCAN to enhance the digital capabilities of cancer centres in the Union, with particular attention paid to opportunities in Eastern Europe, by:
- Implementing a comprehensive training program for the development of digital skills (incl. telemedicine, telemonitoring, ehealth tools) in the prevention context among HCPs, patients, and the general public
- Enhancing digital collaboration within and between cancer centres.
- Implementing telemedicine tools into different settings of cancer care to explore various clinical applications of these tools
- Creating and implementing a solid, integrated framework for the remote follow-up and telemonitoring of cancer patients throughout Europe.
This JA will develop a framework to test and pilot the integration of digital tools in a safe and secure manner complying with all applicable EU regulations in order to improve the use and re-use of health data for the benefit of cancer patients.
This project started on the 1st of May of 2025 and lasts until the 30th of April of 2029. It has been co-funded by the European Union (EU4Health Programme; Grant N° 101219434). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or HaDEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
The research unit participates in eCAN+ with:
- Communication resources in WP2, which will enhance external project communication.
- Qualitative research in WP3, evaluation.
- Support for the Department of Urology, SUH, which participates in WP6 “Collaborative clinical decision-making in diagnostics, treatment, and care across cancer centres (CCs)”.