In June 2025, the Netherlands hosted a European knowledge exchange for the ECHoS project, welcoming national cancer mission hubs from seven countries. Over two days, we shared experiences, discussed challenges and explored what it takes to shape and implement national cancer plans.
Different as our health systems may be, what connects us is bigger than what separates us. We work hard on the same shift: from fragmentation to focus, from ambition to action. And we are all looking for inspiration to help us accelerate.
The two-day exchange took place in Utrecht and was organised by the hub of the Netherlands Cancer Collective (NKC hub), supported by KWF, IKNL and NFK. Delegations from Romania, Portugal, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Belgium, Austria and the Netherlands came together to reflect on how national cancer plans and mission hubs are progressing. The programme combined structured exchange and informal conversations, with plenty of space for learning and connection.
What we saw: no single model, but shared struggles
We opened the event with a ‘tour de table’, where each country presented key challenges and promising practices. A clear takeaway: there is no one-size-fits-all structure. Hubs take many forms. Some hubs are government-led, others are research-driven, or civil-society coalitions. Some are new initiatives, others build on existing cancer centres or innovation networks. Despite these different starting points, the challenges are remarkably similar. Fragmentation is a universal challenge: many actors, many initiatives, not always aligned. How to secure long-term funding. How to maintain momentum, (sometimes) in a temporary project structure. And how to build trust when you have no formal mandate, just shared ambition.
One participant captured the value of being together well: “We’re all trying to move forward with limited resources and no blueprint. It’s encouraging to know others face the same challenges and that we can learn from each other’s experiences.”