Together with the German Cancer Aid, the German Cancer Society and the Working Group of German Tumor Centers, the Federal Ministry of Health launched the National Cancer Plan in 2008 with a total of 13 goals. The focus here is on the further development of early cancer detection, good, evidence-based and cross-sectoral care for cancer patients and on strengthening patient orientation. The first milestone of the National Cancer Plan was the Cancer Screening and Register Act (KFRG), which was passed in 2013. On the one hand, it provides important impetus for improving early cancer detection and, on the other hand, creates the legal framework for the development of clinical cancer registers. The Prevention Act, which came into force in 2015, is also an important element in the fight against cancer in Germany. The aim here is to prevent diseases such as cancer before they even develop.
In 2013, 482,500 people in Germany were newly diagnosed with cancer (229,900 women and 252,600 men). This means that the number of new cases has increased by more than 10 percent in 10 years (14% for women and 10% for men). The absolute number of new cancer cases in Germany has almost doubled since 1970. The main reason for this is that people in Germany are getting older and older. It is to be expected that the number of people who develop cancer and live with cancer will continue to rise. Thanks to improved diagnostics and therapies, cancer patients are now living longer than they were 10 years ago. Survival rates after a cancer diagnosis in Germany are among the highest in Europe. An estimated 4 million people in Germany are now living with a cancer diagnosis.