Policy Dialogue

The policy dialogue entitled, “Addressing the Burden of Lung Cancer through National Planning” is being jointly organised together with ECHoS EU project, with the support of the Εuropean Observatory on Health Systems and Policies.

This event marks the formal recognition of ELLOK as the Greek National Cancer Mission Hub and brings together policymakers, oncology professionals, researchers, international organisations, patient and citizen representatives to explore the transformative potential of setting a national policy for addressing the growing burden of lung cancer and improving patient outcomes in Greece and across the EU.

This policy dialogue has as its principal objectives to foster discussion on:

The full lung cancer screening process: what is the evidence and implementation experience;

Bringing primary and specialist care together for shaping the lung cancer pathway: what challenges and opportunities in implementation do the various stakeholders see;
What conclusions can be drawn and what might the next steps be?

Date: Wednesday, 2 July 2025
Time: 13:00 – 18:00 (lunch provided)
Location: Wyndham Grand Hotel
Address: 2 Megalou Alexandrou Street, Athens, 104 37 Greece

The dialogue is part of a Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (DG RTD) initiative under the European Commission’s Mission on Cancer and will involve representatives of National Cancer Mission Hubs and the ECHoS (Establishing of Cancer Mission Hubs: Networks and Synergies) project.

Agenda

POLICY DIALOGUE
Addressing the Burden of Lung Cancer Through National Planning
Wednesday, 2 July 2025

13:00 – 14:00	Reception and Light Lunch

14:00 – 14:05	Welcome and Introduction
	George Kapetanakis – President of ELLOK

14:05 – 14:20	Addresses
	Eirini Agapidaki – Alternate Greek Minister of Health
	Venetia Lilian Vildiridi – Secretery General, Greek Ministry of Health
	João Breda – WHO Athens

14:20 – 14:50	Introductory Session: Framing the Dialogue
	Florian Tille – Technical Officer, European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
	Hugo Soares – ECHoS & AICIB – Agency for Clinical Research and Biomedical Information
	The Policy Dialogue Concept – Florian Tille – Technical Officer, European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
	Tour-de-table (10 min, led by European Observatory)
	Keynote Speaker: Defining the Lung Cancer Landscape in Greece Georgia Hardavella


14:50 – 16:00	A Comprehensive Overview of the Lung Cancer Screening Process: What is the evidence and implementation experience?
	Facilitator: European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
	Speakers: Mahdi Sheikh – Scientist / International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organization (IARC – WHO) Maria Lasierra Losada – Technical Officer at WHO Europe
	Facilitated discussion with all participants

16:00 – 16.15	Coffee Break

16:15 – 17:30	Bringing Primary and Specialist Care Together to Shape the Lung Cancer Pathway: What challenges and opportunities in implementation do the various stakeholders see?
	Facilitator: European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies
	Speaker: Richard Lee – Consultant Respiratory Physician and Champion for Early Cancer Diagnosis at the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at The Royal Marsden and the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London
	Facilitated discussion with all participants



17:30 – 18:00	Wrap Up and Conclusions
	For the Greek National Cancer Mission Hub: George Kapetanakis – ELLOK
	Joao Breda – WHO Athens
	Hugo Soares – ECHoS

Speakers

Eirini Agapidaki

Alternate Minister of Health

Bio

Eirini Agapidaki is a Psychologist, with an MSc in Health Promotion and Education from the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens; and a PhD in Health Psychology from the same university. She has also specialized in matters of prevention of mental disorders and promotion of mental health. In addition, she has many years of teaching and research experience in the fields of public health policy, public health research methodology and mental health promotion – in the context of national, European and international research programs. She has worked for many years as a research associate at the Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, of the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. In recent years she was elected and served as a Lecturer in Public Health, at the Medical School of the European University of Cyprus. In 2019, she resigned from her academic role in order to take up her duties as the Special Secretary for the Protection of Unaccompanied Minors (at the Ministry of Migration and Asylum). At the end of December 2022, she assumed the duties of Secretary General of Public Health, and since July 2023 she serves as the Alternate Minister of Health and as a member of the Greek Parliament. She has written and published research papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals, while she has presented the results of her research papers at many national and international conferences.

Lilian Venetia Vildiridi

Secretary General for Health Services

Bio

Lilian Venetia Vildiridi is a health economist with expertise in health policy, planning, and financing. She holds degrees from the London School of Economics and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and is currently pursuing a PhD at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.

She has held key advisory and leadership roles at the Greek Ministry of Health, including Director of the Alternate Minister’s office and coordinator for Recovery and Resilience Fund (RRF) health projects. She also represented Greece on the European Commission’s board for COVID-19 vaccine and treatment procurement.
Her experience includes research at LSE Health and Social Care, and she has played a central role in modernizing Greece’s healthcare infrastructure.

Florian Tille

Bio

Florian is with the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, based at the Berlin Hub.
His main areas of work range across evidence-informed health policy and health care for strengthening health systems in Europe. His current focus is on managing two EU-funded projects on cancer research, policy and care, contributing to knowledge brokering with evidence briefings and policy dialogues.

Prior to joining the Observatory, Florian worked at the WHO Regional Office for Europe, Division of Country Health Policies and Systems, as well as with the Integrated Health Services Department at WHO Headquarters, on quality of care, health services resilience, emergency preparedness and response. Before that, he was at the International Department of Germany’s Federal Ministry of Health, and the National Association of Physicians.

Florian holds a doctorate in public health from the Charité Medical University in Berlin and a Master of Public Policy from the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin.

Giorgos (George) Kapetanakis

ELLOK, President

Bio

George Kapetanakis is the President of the Hellenic Cancer Federation – ELLOK and President of the Cancer Patients Association of Pieria.

His experience with cancer 12 years earlier was the catalyst that led him to actively engage in supporting oncology patients. Alongside other patients who shared the same vision, he has worked consistently since 2015 to establish and develop the Hellenic Cancer Federation as the central national umbrella organisation for cancer patient associations in Greece.

He is an active volunteer and member of the Bone Marrow Donor Volunteer Association “Vision of Hope,” promoting the national awareness campaign for voluntary bone marrow donation. He is a strong advocate of the European perspective to effectively address the modern challenges of cancer care and reduce existing inequalities. Furthermore, he believes that collaboration among cancer patient organisations at a European level can provide effective solutions to the serious problems faced daily by cancer patients across Europe. Professionally, he works in the financial services sector.

Hardavella Georgia

Consultant Respiratory Physician at “Sotiria” Athens Chest Diseases Hospital

Bio

Georgia is a Consultant Respiratory Physician at “Sotiria” Athens Chest Diseases Hospital in Greece, one of the country’s foremost national centres for respiratory care, offering over 300 specialized respiratory beds. She has a particular clinical and research interest in lung cancer and interventional bronchoscopies.

Previously, she held the position of Consultant Respiratory Physician and Clinical Lead for Lung Cancer, Bronchoscopy, and Pulmonary Nodule Services at King’s College Hospital in London. She received advanced training in these subspecialties at University College London (UCL), where she also led and contributed to several clinical research initiatives, in collaboration with both UCL and King’s College London. She currently maintains an active and expanding clinical research portfolio at ‘’Sotiria’’ Athens’ Chest Diseases Hospital and she has numerous publications in the field of thoracic oncology.

Georgia serves as the Secretary of the Thoracic Oncology Assembly within the European Respiratory Society (ERS). Through her ongoing involvement with ERS, she has led and contributed to numerous European multidisciplinary initiatives focusing on lung cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment, working in close collaboration with leading experts in the field.

In Greece, she chairs both the National Task Force for Lung Cancer Screening and the Lung Cancer Group of the Hellenic Thoracic Society. The National Task Force is a multidisciplinary collaboration among the Hellenic Thoracic Society, Hellenic Society of Radiology, Hellenic Society of Thoracic, Cardiac and Vascular Surgery, and the Hellenic Cancer Federation. It has developed the country’s national guidelines and a standard operating procedure for lung cancer screening, tailored to both the public and private healthcare sectors. The Task Force will also launch a comprehensive, multidisciplinary training program for healthcare professionals involved in lung cancer screening.

A strong advocate of patient and public engagement in clinical research and service development, Georgia has worked closely with the European Lung Foundation, previously serving as Chair of its Professional Advisory Committee.

Additionally, she is the Secretary of the European Board for Accreditation in Pneumology (EBAP), where she plays a central role in accrediting training centres and educational activities in respiratory medicine across Europe.

Hugo Soares

PhD, Science Manager at AICIB – The Portuguese Agency for Clinical Research and Biomedical Innovation & Co-coordinator, ECHoS Project

Bio

Hugo Soares is a Science Manager at AICIB – The Portuguese Agency for Clinical Research and Biomedical Innovation – where he co-coordinates the European project ECHoS, aiming at creating a network of support to EU Mission on Cancer, and the Portuguese National Cancer Hub (NCH-PT), a structure dedicated to connecting people and organizations to foster the translation of scientific evidence into policies.

The NCH-PT is oriented towards the implementation of EU Mission on Cancer and EBCP initiatives in the full spectrum of cancer – from fundamental research to clinical research and clinical practice. The NCH-PT catalyses the development of multi-stakeholders’ projects and connections to the community in Health, Research and beyond. Hugo holds a a PhD in Biotechnology by NOVA University of Lisbon

João Breda

Head of the WHO Office on Quality of Care and Patient Safety in Athens & Special Representative and Officer in Charge of the WHO Country Office in Greece

Bio

Dr. João Breda, before moving to Greece, was posted in WHO Senior Positions in Copenhagen (Denmark) for seven years and Moscow (Russian Federation) for four years. The recently established Athens Centre of Excellence aims to improve the quality of care and patient safety at a country level and focus on reducing inequalities while promoting health innovation and leadership. He holds a PhD in Nutritional Sciences from Porto University. He has earned his master’s degree in Public Health from the Medical Sciences Faculty of the University Nova de Lisboa and an MBA from the European University in Barcelona.

Dr. Breda was also the recipient of the Gold Medal for outstanding services in the field of Health granted by the Portuguese Ministry of Health in 2018 and received twice (2018-19 and 2024) the DG Award of Excellence for the best team. He has also received more than 20 scientific and academic awards. Dr. Breda has published more than 300 original academic articles and reports, as well as more than 20 original books (including the best seller on infant nutrition in Portugal) and has more than 15,000 citations. He is also considered to be among the top 1% researchers on obesity, globally.

Mahdi Sheikh

Scientist, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC – WHO), Deputy Chair of the Tobacco Control and Smoking Cessation Committee at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC)

Bio

Dr. Mahdi Sheikh is a scientist at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC – WHO) and serves as Deputy Chair of the Tobacco Control and Smoking Cessation Committee at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC). Over the past decade, Dr. Sheikh’s research has focused on understanding the impact of addictive substance use, including opioids and various tobacco products, on cancer risk and survival. He has led pioneering studies demonstrating the clinical benefits of quitting smoking after a cancer diagnosis across multiple cancer types and diverse populations.

He has also contributed to the growing body of evidence supporting the integration of smoking cessation interventions into lung cancer screening programs. Dr. Sheikh’s work played a key role in the recognition of the carcinogenicity of opium consumption, leading to its classification as “carcinogenic to humans” by the IARC-WHO. In 2021, he founded the Opioid Cohort Consortium (OPICO), a global initiative involving 20 institutions and harmonizing data from 25 sources across North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia, creating a unique dataset of nearly two million individuals to investigate the long-term health consequences of opioid use.

María Lasierra Losada

World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe

Bio

María Lasierra Losada is a technical officer at the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe in Copenhagen, Denmark. She has been with WHO since 2019, initially as a consultant and then as a technical officer. Her work focuses on non-communicable diseases, particularly cancer. She holds a Master’s degree in Public Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and a PhD in Molecular Medicine from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.

Dr Richard Lee

Consultant Respiratory Physician and Champion for Early Cancer Diagnosis at the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at The Royal Marsden and the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London

Bio

His main clinical and research interest is early lung cancer diagnosis, as joint National Clinical Lead of the NHS England National Targeted Lung Health Check (TLHC) Programme that will deliver lung cancer screening to the entire UK eligible population by 2029. His research portfolio includes translation of artificial intelligence (AI) research to early cancer detection within studies such as LIBRA, OCTAPUS-AI and AI-SONAR. He is also Principal Investigator for early diagnosis biomarker studies such as NIMBLE, SCOOT and, SPICED across lung screening and genetic risk cohorts. Dr Lee is also The Royal Marsden’s Chief Research Information Officer and co-leads the Early Diagnosis and Detection Centre, at The Royal Marsden and ICR

Dr. Sofia Xesfingi

National Contact Point in the thematic area of Health and in the Cancer Mission

Bio

Sofia Xesfingi works at the National Documentation Center (EKT) as a research and innovation advisor for Horizon Europe programs from 2022. She is appointed National Contact Point in the thematic area of Health and in the Cancer Mission, manages the respective European networks HNN3.0 and ECHoS, and she is a member of the Enterprise Europe Network Hellas and President of the Sector Group Health, supporting Greek institutions in achieving business and technological partnerships, as well as in the participation and implementation of research projects.

She is a post-doctoral researcher, specialized in the field of health economics and has experience in all stages of managing and implementing national, co-financed and international projects, both in corporate environments and with international or national agencies/organizations. She also has academic and teaching experience in health-related topics. She holds a doctorate and a master’s degree from the University of Piraeus in Economics with a specialization in health and a degree in Biology from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.