Combatting Ethnic Disparities in Healthcare:

An online webinar as part of Global Public Health Week 7-11 April 2025.

Background

Though there have been significant improvements in human health over the past decades, the same cannot be said for health equity. Whether looking at differences between countries, or between communities and individuals, disparities persist and prevent the realisation of the right to health for all. These inequities are caused by a wide range of factors, with non-medical factors –  like our level of education, type of employment, or place we live – particularly influential; they are the social determinants of health. These determinants illustrate how systemic societal injustices profoundly impact our ability to be healthy. A 2022 Lancet series added a crucial consideration to this understanding by recognising racism, xenophobia, and discrimination as fundamental determinants of health.

The effects of these structural injustices become clear when zooming in on health outcomes at the community and individual level. Substantial scientific literature highlights how both social and fundamental determinants influence every stage of healthcare – such as access, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment – all of which drive disparities in disease burden. As one of the greatest public health concerns, cancer provides a critical lens to examine these inequities, particularly in relation to gender and ethnicity.

This webinar, co-organised by the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) and the European Cancer Organisation (ECO), explores ethnic health disparities through a lens of cancer inequities. Building on research from across the globe and drawing on experiences from European Union (EU) policy, it raises awareness of the nature of cancer inequities and explores ways to reduce them. In doing so, it addresses both the cancer burden and health disparities within a global context.

Event Objectives:

• To raise awareness of the existing ethnic disparities in cancer care.
• To connect initiatives from across the world related to health equity, ethnicity and gender.
• To identify best practices and ways forward in combating racism and discrimination in health.