CANCER MORTALITY AND PREVENTION IN THE EUROPEAN-UNION

In the European Union (EU), approximately one in four people dies from cancer (27% of men and 21% of women) and one in three contracts the d isease, In recent years, however, trends in cancer mortality appear to have changed, at least in some European countries. Standardized morta lity rates among men have declined since the late 1980s or early 1990s , Among women, a continuous decrease in mortality has been observed ov er some decades. Nevertheless, due to population increase in the EU an d the ageing population, the increase in the absolute numbers of new c ancer cases continues. Lifestyle plays a crucial role in the aetiology of cancer and, because it is at least a principally modifiable determ inant, me can assume that cancer could be avoided to a considerable ex tent via primary prevention.