Françoise Meunier, Founder of the European Initiative on Ending Discrimination Against Cancer Survivors, shared on LinkedIn:
“On 21 October, I had the pleasure of co-chairing our High-Level Conference, ‘The Right to Be Forgotten as a Human Right’, with Mark Lawler in Brussels, as an associated event of the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU 2026.
Survivors, patient advocates, policymakers, clinicians, researchers and legal experts came together with a shared ambition: ensuring that a past cancer diagnosis does not prevent people from building their future.
The discussions reinforced five clear messages:
- Survivors’ voices must guide action. Financial discrimination affects housing, independence and quality of life long after treatment.
- Medical evidence must translate into fairer rules. Policy and insurance practices should reflect advances in cancer outcomes.
- Protection should not depend on where someone lives. National progress must lead to stronger, consistent protection across Europe.
- This is a question of human rights. The discussion chaired by Françoise Tulkens, former Vice-President of the European Court of Human Rights, placed dignity, equality and non-discrimination at the heart of our work.
- Rights must work in practice. Legislation needs awareness, enforcement, oversight and access to redress.
Our priorities are clear: a binding European framework with a five-year benchmark, stronger national protections, and use of the European Social Charter’s mechanisms to address discrimination in access to credit-linked insurance.
I am grateful to the Irish Cancer Society, Fonds Cancer (FOCA), RPP Group, Magali le Grelle, Dorine Fernández, Niki Tsangara, and everyone who joined us. Above all, thank you to the survivors who shared their experiences with such courage.I look forward to taking the next steps together.
A full event report will follow, bringing together the key insights and recommendations.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out: info@endingdiscrimination-cancersurvivors.eu
Visit our website.”
Other articles featuring Françoise Meunier on OncoDaily.