Find out how the EU is preventing cervical cancer in 2026 with vaccinations, screening programs and improved care across Europe.
January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, a global call to action that emphasizes prevention, early detection and better treatment. In the European Union, cervical cancer remains one of the most common cancers among women aged 15 to 44 years, but it can be prevented and treated with effective strategies. Based on this recognition, the EU has taken comprehensive measures to combat this disease.
The EU is working to eliminate cervical cancer through the European Cancer Elimination Plan. HPV vaccination, Strengthen screening programs and improve the quality of health care across member states. Major projects such as EUCervScreen QA are updating clinical guidelines and developing European quality assurance schemes to ensure high quality prevention and treatment pathways, reduce inequalities and improve patient survival outcomes.
Understanding cervical cancer
Specifically, the plan aims to prevent cervical cancer by vaccinating young people with the HPV vaccine, with the goal of increasing vaccination coverage among girls to 90% and significantly increasing vaccination coverage among boys by 2030.
Project goals and new guidelines
Despite existing European guidelines and cancer plans, there are approximately 33,000 cervical cancer cases and 15,000 related deaths in the EU. To address these persistent challenges, the EU4Health project: EUCervScreen QAThe International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), in collaboration with the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, was created to improve outcomes and research in cervical cancer. Work on this project began in 2023 and had two main objectives:
Update European clinical practice guidelines for cervical cancer prevention, including HPV vaccination, cervical cancer screening, and treatment of precancerous lesions.
We have developed a European Quality Assurance (QA) scheme that covers the entire care pathway from primary to tertiary prevention and serves as a means of implementing European guidelines and improving cancer care.
Project completed successfully Eight evidence-based recommendations To help healthcare professionals make informed choices about the starting and ending ages for cervical cancer screening and the type of test, we clearly explain care options, including their benefits and risks, and evaluate the quality of evidence and strength of recommendations associated with each intervention.
Additionally, this project developed quality indicators for HPV-based screening programs, including risk-based triage of HPV-positive women, HPV detection techniques (DNA vs. mRNA vs. other), sample collection strategies (auto-vaginal, auto-urine vs. donor), screening intervals, and screening in vaccinated populations.
of EUCervScreen QA has advanced the development of requirements for a quality assurance scheme, starting with treatment-related pathways and general requirements. This ongoing effort ensures that quality standards evolve with clinical best practices across the EU.
