BARI - In Italy the survival rates 5 years after the diagnosis of oncological diseases are higher than the European average. It emerges from the report 'State of Health in the EU: Italy. Country Health Profile 2019 'presented in Bari. For prostate cancer in Italy survival is 90% against an average of 87% in the rest of Europe. For lung cancer it is 16% in Italy and 15% in Europe, for breast cancer 86% in Italy against 83% in Europe, for colon cancer 64% in Italy and 60% in Europe. "The national health system - reads the report - normally provides effective and timely treatment for cancer patients".
More generally, the Italian National Health Service is promoted for its effectiveness: "Italy - it is written - has the second lowest preventable mortality rate in the EU, after Cyprus". The report - which will be presented later in Athens, Stockholm and Helsinki - analyzes the effectiveness and efficiency of the Italian health system by comparing it with that of 26 EU Member States. The event is attended by Deputy Minister of Health, Sandra Zampa. The conclusion of the work is entrusted to the President of the Puglia Region Michele Emiliano. The round tables organized during the morning will also be attended by Isabel De La Mata, director general of the European Health Commission, Silvio Brusaferro, president of the Italian Institute of Health and Luca Lorenzoni (OECD).
98 thousand deaths in 2017 related to incorrect diet
About a third of the deaths that occurred in Italy in 2017 are attributable to behavioral risk factors, including diet-related risks, smoking, alcohol consumption and poor physical activity. This is what emerges from the State of Health in the EU: Italy report. Country Health Profile 2019 "presented in Bari, and organized by Aress Puglia in collaboration with the European Commission, OECD and European Observatory on Health Systems and Health Policies. Of the total deaths that occurred in 2017, about 16% (98,000) is attributable to diet-related risks (including low fruit and vegetable consumption and high sugar and salt consumption). Tobacco consumption (including active and passive smoking) is responsible for around 14% of deaths (over 90,000 ), almost 4% (26,000) is attributable to alcohol consumption and 3% (18,000) to low physical activity All percentages are lower than the European Union average except for low physical activity. Italy tobacco consumption continues to be one of the main public health problems, particularly among men: in 2017, 25% of the male population in Italy said they smoke daily, compared to 15% of women. Despite the decline over the past decade, the percentage of smokers remains higher than in most EU countries. The number of smokers among Italian adolescents also remains very high. In 2015, over a third of boys and girls aged 15 and 16 said they had smoked, even occasionally, in the previous month.