As stroke survivors move on with their lives through new challenges, society should give them the confidence that they are not alone. For this, there is an urgent need to solve relevant issues such as stroke prevention, available continuous care, and rehabilitation programs that facilitate reintegration in society.
In 2040, 155 million Europeans will be over 65.6 and without decisive actions, the number of citizens suffering from Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) and the burden of dealing with the disease will increase dramatically. For example, the projected number of people living with stroke will increase from nine million in 2017 to 12 million in 2040.
Given these projections, several organizations (see
safestroke.eu) have urged
Europe to develop a comprehensive European plan to address the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Strokes and heart attacks are cardiovascular diseases and are the leading cause of death in Europe.
According to these organization, this plan should catalyze research and innovation in CVD (and its interaction with other chronic diseases) and promote public-private partnerships in CVD innovation. Who should be involved? Policy and funding instruments, such as Horizon Europe, the EU4Health Programme, the European Health Data Space and Next Generation EU, could help as well as through healthcare and life sciences related policy instruments.
REFERENCE Action Plan for Stroke in Europe 2018–2030. Norrving, B., Barrick, J., Davalos, A., Dichgans, M., Cordonnier, C., Guekht, A., ... & Caso, V. (2018). European Stroke Journal, 3(4), 309-336