Cancer literacy - Informing patients and implementing shared decision making.

In order to tailor treatment to their needs, cancer patients are encouraged to be more active and engaged in their care decisions and to be autonomous yet collaborative with their healthcare professionals when it comes to aspects of their treatment in order to get better results. However, this can only happen after providing them with accurate information about cancer and the different treatment alternatives and their potential side effects. However, sharing robust data-based information is often hindered by exposure to misleading information through different media and online platform, where patients might come across unscientifically founded health practices. Increasing health literacy and cancer-specific literacy is essential to fight this negative trend. The idea is that more knowledgeable patients will be able to debunk more easily misinformation they encounter. This is also related to inequalities among cancer patients. Not only levels of cancer literacy within Europe are uneven across and within countries, but there are social groups that, due to specific social determinants, are systematically less informed and skilled regarding cancer care. In this paper an overview of gaps in addressing literacy issues, and the importance of health literacy to empower patients in their journey through treatment is delineated, concluding with some recommendations to improve cancer literacy in Europe.

GENimmune NV.

GENimmune NV is a newly created biopharmaceutical company, based in Belgium, that focuses on developing immune therapeutics against chronic infectious diseases characterized by inadequate immune responses. The company has already developed an early-stage pipeline of therapeutic vaccine candidates against the hepatitis B and C viruses and human papillomavirus. GENimmune's goal is to optimize the human immune response through rational vaccine design. Its vaccine-development strategy is based on the use of polyepitopes that take immunological plasticity and viral diversity into account. This represents an original approach to medical treatment. The company's R&D activities are supported by a biomanufacturing unit that also has an established track record of providing customized third-party contract services.