Appropriate Cancer Care in General Practice: Balancing What Matters

How do we define truly appropriate cancer care? This year’s conference explores the balance between the benefits and burdens of screening, the importance of personalized treatment, collaboration across care settings, and innovative approaches to survivorship and palliative care. Together with clinicians, researchers, and policymakers, we will shape sustainable, patient-centered cancer care for the future.

As cancer prevention, detection, treatment, and aftercare evolve, the question of what constitutes truly patient-centered and sustainable care has never been more pressing.

Professor Sjoerd Repping, chairman of ZE&GG (healthcare evaluation and appropriate care) will share insights on how a systems change is taking place in medical specialist care in the Netherlands. In a collaborative effort (ZE&GG) patients, medical specialistss, nurses, health care insurers, hospitals and clinics and governement work together to conduct the relevant trials, to eliminate care that is of no benefit and to implement proven effective care.

Screening and early detection offer undeniable benefits, particularly for patients whose cancers are identified at an earlier, more treatable stage. However, these programs come with inherent challenges: financial costs, demands on healthcare personnel, and the psychological and physical impact on individuals who undergo screening unnecessarily or receive false-positive results. Striking the right balance is vital.

Professor Floortje Scheepers, representing the Dutch Council for Public Health and Society (Raad van Volksgezondheid en Samenleving), will explore these dilemmas, drawing on the council’s thought-provoking report “Almost Everyone Sick” (Bijna iedereen ziek), which questions the boundaries of medicine and the definition of health.

The principle of appropriate care extends beyond screening to treatment decisions. Professor Barbara van Leeuwen will examine cancer treatment strategies in older patients, where personalized approaches can optimize outcomes while minimizing unnecessary interventions. This conversation is essential as cancer care increasingly shifts toward shared decision-making and tailoring therapies to individual needs.

Collaboration remains a cornerstone of effective cancer care. Professor Mirjam Koopman will highlight how network-building between hospitals is reshaping oncology services and what this means for primary care. By fostering strong partnerships across healthcare domains, we can create integrated systems that ensure patients receive the right care, at the right time, and in the right place.

Equally important is survivorship care. What role should hospitals play in long-term follow-up, and how can we reimagine care delivery to meet patients’ psychosocial needs while promoting healthy living and cancer prevention? Discussions will explore innovative models to support survivors and their families, emphasizing lifestyle interventions that aid recovery and reduce future cancer risk.

Dr. Everlien de Graaf will show how research supports truly personalized and appropriate care in the palliative phase. She will highlight the use of the Utrecht Symptom Diary- four dimensional (USD-4D) as a practical tool for symptom monitoring. By integrating patient-reported outcomes into daily practice, clinicians can respond proactively and deliver care tailored to individual needs.

On Monday 18 May 2026, the closing symposium of the project Casemanager Oncology in Primary Care will take place at Conference Center Domstad in Utrecht, the Netherlands (in Dutch). The symposium takes place at the same venue as the Ca-PRI conference and builds on the same ambition: advancing interdisciplinary, patient-centered cancer care across the continuum.

This symposium highlights the outcomes of a national initiative exploring how oncology casemanagers can strengthen primary care and ensure appropriate, continuous support for people living with and after cancer. Over the past year, five pilot sites in the Netherlands have introduced the role of casemanager oncology in primary care, with support from Stichting Vrienden Integrale Oncologische Zorg (VIOZ) and KWF Kankerbestrijding.

In addition, the symposium will share broader project results, including a clear definition of the casemanager role, best practices identified across the pilots, and perspectives for future implementation.

Organised by IKNL on behalf of the Taskforce Cancer Survivorship Care (TF CSC), with support from Stichting Vrienden Integrale Oncologische Zorg (VIOZ).

>> More information and registration will be available in December 2025 / January 2026.

We invite junior researchers to reserve Monday afternoon for a special pre-conference programme designed especially for them. This session is open to researchers who, at the time of Ca-PRI 2026, have not yet obtained their PhD title in 2026 (including PhD candidates and research staff with ambitions to pursue a doctorate).

Further details about the content of this session will follow, but we encourage junior researchers to submit an abstract and already save the date.

Join optional afternoon activities and the festive Welcome Reception on Monday, and don’t miss the Conference Dinner at the atmospheric Geertekerk on Tuesday evening.

>> More information about the social programme

Practical and social highlights

Ca-PRI 2026 combines an inspiring scientific programme with opportunities to explore the historic city of Utrecht. Before the conference begins, participants can join optional social activities and a Welcome Reception at Stadskasteel Oudaen. On Tuesday evening, the Conference Dinner will take place at the Geertekerk.

Utrecht is easy to reach by train from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and easy to explore on foot or by bike. And range of nearby hotels offer special rates for conference participants.

>> More practical information

The symposium is organized by the following program committee:

Dr. Kristel van Asselt, GP/ clinical epidemiologist, UMC Utrecht

Drs. Camilla Basart, Oncomid, UMC Utrecht

Dr. Daan Brandenbarg, clinical epidemiologist, UMC Groningen

Dr. Sjoerd Elias, clinical epidemiologist, UMC Utrecht

Dr. Marthe Mansour, GP, UMC Utrecht

Drs. Karin Slotman, conference organizer

Dr. Mariken Stegmann, GP/ clinical epidemiologist, UMC Groningen

Dr. Miranda Velthuis, Integraal Kankercentrum Nederland (IKNL) Utrecht

Dr. Sigrid Vervoort, nursing science, UMC Utrecht

Niek de Wit, (em.) professor of General Practice, Julius Centre – UMC Utrecht

Do you have a question about Ca-PRI 2026 in Utrecht? Please leave your name, email address, and message below, and our team will get back to you shortly.