IARC and partners launch EU-funded TOGAS project in Latvia to advance gastric cancer prevention in Europe

Researchers from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) launched a new project focused on the implementation of gastric cancer prevention strategies in the European Union (EU) in Riga, Latvia, on 30 March 2023. This major EU initiative, known as the Towards gastric cancer screening implementation in the European Union (TOGAS) project, aims to provide the missing evidence base for effective gastric cancer prevention in the EU by assessing the needs of EU Member States and target populations in gastric cancer prevention, evaluating various gastric cancer prevention strategies for implementation in the EU by conducting pilot studies in different countries, and ensuring the sustainability and scale-up of the TOGAS results by global dissemination of information.

Pilot studies will assess potential population-based Helicobacter pylori test-and-treat programmes and endoscopic screening for high-risk groups, while considering cost–effectiveness and medical ethics. The findings will inform future gastric cancer prevention strategies across the EU, balancing effectiveness, feasibility, and acceptability. The project will also provide further justifications to heighten the priority of gastric cancer prevention on the health-care agenda and to reduce the gastric cancer burden in the EU.

Supported by the EU4Health programme, the TOGAS project will run for 3 years. It is being coordinated by the University of Latvia Institute of Clinical and Preventive Medicine (UL ICPM). IARC and more than 20 partner institutions in 14 European countries will make recommendations to inform gastric cancer prevention strategies across the EU. To accelerate these efforts, TOGAS will build on another ongoing EU co-funded project, Accelerating gastric cancer reduction in Europe through Helicobacter pylori eradication (EUROHELICAN), which will be scaled up and expanded to other European countries.

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Read more about the TOGAS project

Read more about the EUROHELICAN project 

Read more about the IARC Gastric Cancer Prevention Team