Lifestyle choices and beating cancer

On 21 October, the Kangaroo Group organized an online debate on Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides’ flagship initiative. The webinar, chaired by Michael Gahler MEP, President of the Kangaroo Group, involved a presentation by Professor David Nutt of Imperial College London and featured Deirdre Clune, MEP and Tomislav Sokol, MEP.

The event discussed the potential of harm reduction to help EU citizens make healthier lifestyle choices and how that could help prevent cancer.

The following is a summary of the webinar, from Professor Nutt’s presentation, to the contributions by MEPs Clune and Sokol and the Q&A session.

Panel

• Professor David Nutt, Imperial College London

• Deirdre Clune, EPP MEP

• Tomislav Sokol, EPP MEP

• Michael Gahler, EPP MEP

Introduction

• Michael Gahler introduced the event, saying that 40% of cancers in Europe can be prevented and incentivising European citizens to choose healthier options can go some way towards helping prevent these cancers, such as the ones caused by alcohol and tobacco.

Professor David Nutt

• Professor Nutt presented to the webinar on the principles of harm reduction, particularly in relation to alcohol and tobacco.

• He outlined that preventative measures such as increasing taxation, educating on harms, increasing the age for use of alcohol and tobacco, restricting the locations where they can be bought and the times they can be purchased can all help to reduce the harm caused by alcohol and tobacco.

• He also said that enabling access to safer alternatives such as snus and e-cigarettes for smokers as approaches that can reduce smoking-induced cancers.

• On tobacco, Nutt said: “What causes cancer in smokers, is not the nicotine, but the tar.” He presented an analysis of the level of harms associated with different ways of delivering nicotine showing how very different they were, with cigarettes the most harmful compared with snus and vaping.

• Nutt pointed to Sweden’s experience with snus as an example of how less harmful alternatives to smoking can reduce smoking-induced cancers, saying: “Snus really does reduce cancer.”

• Nutt pointed out that cigarette use in Norway has fallen while consumption of snus has risen, showing that Norwegians are giving up smoking for snus in increasing numbers.

• Nutt also pointed out that: “e-cigarettes are extraordinarily low in carcinogens.” He said that “we can say, almost certainly, that e-cigarettes will reduce mouth and lung cancers compared with smoking.”

• Nutt showed evidence from the USA that tobacco smoking in young people has fallen despite the fact that more are vaping. This, he said, confirms that there is no “gateway effect” from vaping to smoking.
• Nutt said that in heavy drinkers by reducing your alcohol intake by 25 grams a day could be reducing your risk of oral cavity cancer by a third.
• Nutt pointed out that alcohol taxation increases are predicted to reduce the prevalence of alcohol induced cancers.

Deirdre Clune, MEP

• Clune stated that the European Parliament’s Special Committee on Beating Cancer (BECA) recognises that “people have habits, their way of life and their lifestyle,” and that the committee will focus on all areas of cancer, across prevention, early diagnoses, treatment and care

• She stressed that a coordinated approach is needed, with BECA focusing on prevention as a key area as 40% of cancers are preventable.

• Clune pointed out the example of snus in Sweden as something that BECA could “hold on to.” She said that smokers most often start smoking when they’re young, and it is very rare for smokers to take it up later in life.

• Clune said that people need to understand that smoking is an addiction and that safer alternatives can be a way forward. She pointed out that most people associate smoking just with lung cancer, while it in fact causes many others.

• She pointed out a similar fact with alcohol and liver cancer. She recognised that restricting the sale of alcohol can be effective and that the sale of alcohol for young people should be looked at.

• Clune pointed to restrictions on alcohol advertising and particularly restrictions on advertising on television and in sports as having changed changed lifestyle behaviours.

• She said she hopes BECA’s report will be ambitious and recommend action on alcohol and tobacco. She recognises that BECA has a lot to do, and input from experts like Nutt will help them in their work. She stressed that prevention is certainly an area where BECA hope to play a role.

Tomislav Sokol, MEP

• Said Nutt’s presentation was interesting, in terms of the evidence presented. Sokol said that decisions need to be made strictly on the available evidence and that something that is lacking. He pointed out that conversations with academics and researchers is extremely important to the Parliament.

• Sokol referenced the previous court ruling in Europe on snus. He said that often, the European courts rely on impact assessments made by the Commission, as the courts themselves are not equipped in these areas to decide by themselves.

• Sokol stressed the importance of harmonised rules across the EU and said evidence must be fed into the Commission.

• Sokol pointed out that people can often decide for themselves on healthy lifestyle choices, but they need to get the most information possible to do so, and said this is one area where the EU can play an important role.

• He said he hopes that BECA’s report that will be sent to the Commission will be ambitious and evidence based.

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