Table 1 Options for further action to improve cancer literacy in Europe

1) Create policy frameworks

 ● Develop an EU cancer health literacy framework, reflecting on the role of health literacy in cancer care, potential gaps, and recommendations for action, as outlined in this paper.

 ● Include health literacy as part of the National Cancer Control Plans and Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan.

2) Specific activities to improve health literacy in cancer

 ● Improve health literacy education of health professionals as part of clinical and public health capacity building and incorporating health literacy into educational curricula.

 ● Improve health literacy of patients by providing adequate and timely support as well as active involvement in their disease and self-management procedures.

 ● Monitor the implementation of cancer literacy in European healthcare settings and gather lessons learned to enhance the health literacy agenda in general, for example, through the establishment of cancer literacy projects.

 ● Implement a universal precautions approach by assuming that patients may have difficulty comprehending health information and accessing health services and implementing systems to promote better understanding by all patients.

 ● Evaluate materials according to evidence-based health literacy principles.

3) Further research

 ● Study cancer literacy from the perspective of the patient at different stages of cancer care.

 ● Study cancer literacy in relation to emotional impact and psycho-social distress.

 ● Strengthen the health system efforts to bridge communication smoothly between primary, secondary, and tertiary levels of healthcare.

 ● Study the economic advantages of investing in cancer literacy.