Dan-Ştefan Motreanu· PPE

Confirmed

In the European Union, cancer remains the second main cause of mortality, with over 2.7 million new cases annually and almost 1.3 million deaths.

Omissions

• The figure of 2.7 million new cases refers specifically to 2024 data published by the Joint Research Centre in December 2025
• The mortality figure of almost 1.3 million is a 2025 projection from Annals of Oncology (1.28 million deaths), slightly higher than the 1.1-1.14 million deaths reported for 2021-2022 by Eurostat
• The second leading cause claim refers to death statistics from 2021-2022 where cancer accounted for 21.6%-22.3% of all deaths versus circulatory diseases at 32%-32.8%

Sources

• PrimaryJoint Research Centre (European Commission) - The latest EU cancer data: what is new?2.7 million new cancer cases in 2024 in the EU
• PrimaryEurostat - Causes of death statisticsCancer was the second most common cause of death in 2022 at 22.3% of all deaths, after circulatory diseases at 32.7%
• PrimaryEurostat - Cancer statisticsIn 2021, cancer was the second leading cause of death in the EU with 1.1 million deaths (21.6% of all deaths), after circulatory diseases (1.71 million deaths)
• PrimaryEurostat News - Circulatory diseases and cancer: 54% of all EU deaths in 2021Cancer was the second most common cause of death with 1.14 million deaths in 2021, compared to circulatory diseases at 1.71 million
• AcademicAnnals of Oncology - European cancer mortality predictions for the year 2025Estimated 1,280,000 cancer deaths in the EU in 2025