Jesper Fisker for the UICC Board of Directors

Jesper Fisker is seeking election to the UICC Board of Directors to help advance UICC’s mission of reducing the global cancer burden and strengthening collaboration across governments, research and civil society. He sees UICC as uniquely placed to bring together policymakers, patients and civil society in ways that create real change for people affected by cancer around the world. 

Jesper Fisker brings a combination of executive leadership, health policy, reform experience and organisational governance. Before joining the Danish Cancer Society, he served as Permanent Secretary in several Danish ministries, including the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of the Interior and Health, and the Ministry of Social Affairs, where he led major policy reforms and public institutions. He also chaired Denmark’s Health Structure Commission, whose recommendations led to the country’s biggest healthcare reform in 25 years. 

As CEO of the Danish Cancer Society, Jesper Fisker leads Denmark’s largest health NGO, with around 400,000 paying members and 35,000 volunteers. He leads work across research, prevention, and support for patients and relatives, and oversees the Danish Cancer Institute with its strong international partnerships. He also brings international experience from working with WHO, the UN, European and Nordic cancer organisations, the NCD Alliance in East Africa, and through recent engagement in UICC’s Reimagining Cancer Research in Europe and UICC’s Solidarity Fund for Ukraine.

Jesper Fisker can bring a strategic and coalition-driven perspective to the UICC Board of Directors. Throughout his career, he has worked across government, healthcare systems and civil society to build partnerships, shape policy and implement complex reforms. His contribution would not only be to help set direction, but also to help turn priorities into action and support UICC’s work through practical leadership, collaboration and implementation. 

The most powerful tool in cancer prevention is reducing tobacco and nicotine use. Jesper Fisker believes the global response must move beyond mitigation and towards elimination. Every year, tobacco and nicotine cause 8 million deaths worldwide and remain the single most preventable cause of cancer.

As a candidate for the UICC Board of Directors, Jesper Fisker wants UICC to help drive stronger international cooperation on tobacco and nicotine endgame strategies. Countries must be able to adapt solutions to their own context, but they should not have to face legal, trade and regulatory barriers alone. He will work for UICC to convene dialogue, share lessons and help countries move their ambitions into action. 

Inequality remains one of the greatest challenges in global cancer care, both between countries and within them. Jesper Fisker points in particular to access to oncology medicines, where some health systems can offer new life-saving treatments quickly, while others face long delays or prices they cannot afford.

As a candidate for the UICC Board of Directors, he wants to help strengthen UICC’s work on transparency, fair pricing and shared learning across countries. His aim is to support collaboration between governments and civil society so that innovation in cancer treatment benefits patients more fairly across the world. He will also work to advance UICC’s ATOM Coalition on Access to Oncology Medicines. 

A strong and independent civil society plays a vital role in cancer prevention, early diagnosis, treatment, patient support and accountability. Community and patient organisations often reach people where health systems cannot, helping raise awareness, improve prevention and give patients a stronger voice.

As a candidate for the UICC Board of Directors, Jesper Fisker wants to strengthen collaboration between civil society and healthcare systems. Drawing on his experience from health reform, international partnerships and work with organisations including WHO, the UN and the NCD Alliance, he wants to help empower local actors, strengthen UICC’s networks and support civil society in shaping cancer policy and practice. 

Research is a defining part of the Danish Cancer Society’s work. We have our own institute, the Danish Cancer Institute, which contributes cutting-edge research across key areas of the cancer field, including diagnostics, treatment, late effects, and rehabilitation. With around 270 employees from 30 nationalities, the Institute is a highly specialised international research environment and home to some of the world’s leading cancer researchers. This gives us a strong in-house foundation for advancing knowledge and helping shape progress across the cancer agenda.

Moreover, research is part of our core mission, and more than 60% of our funds go directly to research, reflecting the central role research plays in driving progress against cancer. 

The Danish Cancer Society runs Denmark’s largest knowledge centre for cancer prevention. Our prevention work builds on strong research into cancer risk factors and health behaviour and is translated into campaigns, partnerships, counselling, analysis, and advocacy.

We work across areas including tobacco and nicotine, alcohol, diet, physical activity, overweight, sun exposure, HPV vaccination, early detection, and screening. This is essential because many cancer cases can be prevented, and because social inequality continues to shape cancer risk and outcomes. 

The Danish Cancer Society supports people affected by cancer through a broad range of services for both patients and relatives. Across the country, we offer counselling, activities, communities, and practical support designed to meet people where they are and respond to the many different challenges cancer can bring.

Support is available through cancer counselling centres and services in 46 locations, through our cancer hotline, online counselling at cancer.dk, the digital forum Cancerforum, and the app Sammenholdet. Together, these services help ensure that no one has to navigate cancer on their own, and that patients and relatives can find guidance, reassurance, and a sense of connection at some of the most difficult moments in life. 

Across research, prevention and patient support, the Danish Cancer Society also works to shape the political decisions that define how cancer is prevented, detected, treated and lived with. We have helped put cancer at the centre of the political agenda in Denmark, including through the introduction of the national cancer pathways, and we continue to play an active role in major policy discussions such as Cancer Plan V. Our political work has also contributed to concrete improvements for people affected by cancer, including the preservation of extended sick pay rules, broader access to dental subsidies after cancer treatment, the reinstatement of maximum waiting time rules for all patients with suspected cancer, and new solutions to ease the financial burden of medicine costs. Through dialogue with decision-makers at local, national and European level, we work to turn knowledge and patient experience into lasting change.