The Central and Eastern European Academy of Oncology, founded with the cooperation of doctors and researchers from 21 countries, has gained newfound momentum. Established by a Hungarian initiative in 2020, it was Prof. Dr. Miklós Kásler’s vision realized. On June 14 and 15, member states coordinated the most vital goals and most relevant aspects of joint work at an international conference held in Budapest. Prof. Dr. Miklós Kásler has expounded on how the Academy of Oncology’s founding was much needed and the important roles it fulfills in the latest episode of the video interview series “From the horse’s mouth” (Első kézből).
The professor explained that after World War II, oncology has developed in different directions in the Eastern and Western parts of Europe. The reason behind this was that organizational and financial capabilities were different, as were outlook and tradition. A demand arose, however, for a system of care consisting of similar, homogenous units capable of working together in harmony. Screening methods, diagnostic and therapeutic systems, and medical experiments should also be in harmony with each other.
“The Government of Hungary had accepted this view – the professor said –, because it considered the state of oncology an important priority, and as with any area where human lives can be saved, the Government of Hungary takes all the necessary steps, just as it did in 2019.”
According to the Professor, the Academy of Oncology was launched in 2020 with signatures from ministers and state secretaries of 21 countries, marking the beginning of a joint venture considered significant and important in the East and West alike. The first two years were extremely successful, but following that, the pandemic has unfortunately brought about a great setback. “The current situation, however, afforded us the opportunity to pick up right where we left off. An opportunity made possible by the fact that prior to 2018, Hungarian oncology had been so advanced that it could stand comparison to any European system.” –he added.
The professor emphasized the importance of the creation of the national cancer registry and of sharing data internationally. He went on to say that the reason for why it was so important to create a unified European cancer registry was that “the number of diseased or deceased persons, aka morbidity and mortality, determine whether systems of prevention and screening are reliable, what kind of structure needs to be built, and what capacities are needed.”
According to Prof. Dr. Miklós Kásler’s words, during the current congress, Professor Ulrik Ringborg, Professor of Oncology, and Director of the Cancer Center Karolinska, the head of the most prestigious academy in Western Europe and a member of the Nobel Assembly, emphasized that oncology is in a fractured state within Western Europe itself, concentration is needed, just like in Central and Eastern Europe. If this process were to begin, it would be best if every country started developing its own system toward certain standards harmonizing with each other.
He emphasized that the shocking fact based on international consensus that was mentioned at the conference should be taken very seriously, namely, that if current trends were to continue, by 2050, every person who lives to be 65 years old will be suffering from some kind of tumor-related disease.
“The first Hungarian oncological statistic had been compiled by professor Gyula Dollinger in 1905, which showed that on the territory of the Hungarian Kingdom, which was three times the size of modern Hungary, five thousand people died of cancer. Today, in a Hungary reduced to a third of its original size, 33–34 thousand people are lost to cancer according to the extremely accurate Hungarian Cancer Registry, but this tendency is the same anywhere in the world. Cancer is not one single disease, but considering only the histological results, at least 250 types exist. They are different in terms of biological properties, ability to spread locally, metastatic tendency, etc. So there will never be one single medicine against cancer. It’s a great question, whether most cancer diseases, say, 90-95 percent of them could become curable at any stage at any point in the future. Oncology is rapidly developing, the knowledge base doubles every five years. But this is an existing and acute problem, and I can say that the Government of Hungary has reached out to 21 cooperative countries to improve the treatment of an extremely complex disease.”
Regarding the formation of cancer diseases, Prof. Dr. Miklós Kásler highlighted the importance of prevention. As he said, there are several hundreds or even thousands of chemical, physical, biological or metabolic malfunctions that could be the reason behind the formation of cancer, external and internal factors, and if these could be reduced, then less people would be afflicted.
Regarding the necessity of screening tests, he said that screening was the most successful part of the fight against cancer. “It’s very important to emphasize that we are talking about examining people in specific age groups and circumstances without any symptoms or complaints in order to detect the tumor at such an early stage when it’s in all likelihood completely curable. For example, in case of a vocal cord cancer, either radiation, laser surgery or classical surgical intervention will cure the disease 95–96 percent of the time. But if the patient already progressed to stage four, then out of 100 people, only 25 have a chance for recovery. Sp screening and early diagnostics are this important. As are nutrition, healthy lifestyle and avoiding stress.”
