ZAGREB, 5 June 2022 - Croatia on Sunday marked for the first time National Cancer Survivors Day, and on that occasion Health Minister Vili Beroš pointed out the importance of prevention of malignant diseases.

He went on to say that all cancer survivors deserve the biggest respect and praise for their courage, enthusiasm and power they show in overcoming malignant diseases.

According to him, every third person in Croatia is affected by malignant diseases.

He highlighted the importance of timely checkups and national preventive screening programmes.

According to the latest Eurostat data for 2020, in terms of the cancer-caused mortality rate Croatia ranks fourth after it was second in 2019.

This is positive headway, however, the minister warns that the national cancer incidence rate in Croatia is higher than in the EU average rate due to late checkups with physicians, unhealthy habits, insufficient health literary and an aging population.

The health ministry's state secretary Silvio Bašić said at a ceremony marking the day in Cvjetni Trg Square today that the action plan for the next three-year period was being hammered out.

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