At the World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025, the spotlight on Bladder Cancer Awareness Month Grants celebrated community-driven innovation from across four continents, showing how small awards can spark meaningful, lasting impact. With live Spanish interpretation available via Wordly, participants heard how Wisdom Zunguzungu, Fiorella Gagliardi, Óscar Rodríguez, and Charles Ogada are closing awareness gaps, mobilising local networks, and bringing vital information to those who need it most.
News & Events Category: EVENTS
Meaningful patient engagement in action
At the World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025, the session “Meaningful patient engagement in action” brought together a diverse panel to explore how patient voices can shape care, research, and decision-making, not as a symbolic gesture, but as a shared responsibility across all stakeholders.
Moderated by Alex Filicevas, Executive Director of the World Bladder Cancer Patient Coalition, the discussion featured Christine La Rose, bladder cancer survivor and Patient Support and Advisory Leader at BEAT Bladder Cancer Australia;
Making sense of medicine access
On Public Day in Brussels, the World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025 hosted “Making sense of medicine access,” a practical, multi-stakeholder conversation on how promising science becomes real treatment for real people. Moderated by Lauren Pretorius (Campaigning for Cancer), the session brought together Mihai Rotaru (EFPIA) and Robert Sauermann (Austrian Federation of Social Insurances) to unpack where and why access stalls, and how to fix it.
Lauren opened the session by reminding participants that innovation only matters when it reaches patients.
Patient voice in Health Technology Assessments
Patient voice in Health Technology Assessments
The World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025 in Brussels continued on Public Day with an insightful session titled “Patient voice in Health Technology Assessments (HTA).” The discussion focused on how meaningful patient involvement can improve the way new medicines, diagnostics, and technologies are evaluated—ensuring that innovation leads to real benefits for people affected by bladder cancer.
Moderated by Dr Anke-Peggy Holtorf, Board Member of HTAi (Health Technology Assessment International),
Patient stories that drive change
The World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025 continued on Public Day in Brussels with a moving session titled “Patient stories that drive change.” The session featured two powerful personal testimonies from Anita Eik Roald, bladder cancer patient and CEO of the Norwegian Bladder Cancer Society, and Alessandro Boni, bladder cancer survivor and volunteer at Associazione PaLiNuRo.
Both speakers shared how their experiences and personal journeys inspired them to advocate for support,
Latest developments in bladder cancer research
The World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025 continued on Public Day in Brussels with a session exploring the latest developments in bladder cancer research, featuring insights from two leading experts, Dr Ashish M. Kamat, Chair of the WBCPC Scientific Advisory Board and Professor of Urologic Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Prof. Hendrik Van Poppel, Policy Office Chair at the European Association of Urology.
Driving policy progress in bladder cancer through collaboration
The World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025 continued on Public Day in Brussels with an insightful multi-stakeholder session titled Driving policy progress in bladder cancer through collaboration. Moderated by Sarah Coffey Degrange from Cancer Vessie France, the discussion brought together experts from across research, policy, and industry to explore how joint action can accelerate change for people affected by bladder cancer.
Prof. Hendrik Van Poppel,
Driving progress through collaboration and patient voices
The Public Day of the World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025 opened in Brussels with a powerful and forward-looking session titled Our vision for global bladder cancer advocacy. Led by Lori Funk-Cirefice (President, World Bladder Cancer Patient Coalition & President, Cancer Vessie France), Michelle Colero (Vice-President, World Bladder Cancer Patient Coalition & Executive Director, Bladder Cancer Canada), and Alex Filicevas (Executive Director,
Mastering the essentials of strong organisational leadership
During Advocates Day at the World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025 in Brussels, participants took part in an interactive workshop called “Mastering the essentials of strong organisational leadership.” The session was led by Benita Lipps, CEO & Founder of Novya, and focused on helping patient organisations strengthen their management and daily work while staying true to their mission.
Benita began by sharing a reality many organisations face today: less funding,
Advancing patient voices in Health Technology Assessment (HTA)
On Advocates Day at the World Bladder Cancer Patient Forum 2025 in Brussels, participants joined a two-part session, “Advancing patient voices in Health Technology Assessment,” led by Dr Anke-Peggy Holtorf (HTAi Board Member). The morning presentation set the scene: HTA is a multidisciplinary process used to determine the value of health technologies (diagnostics, medicines, devices, procedures) to inform fair, efficient decisions in health systems. Dr Anke-Peggy Holtorf underlined the momentum created by the recent global push for social participation in health policy,
