To strengthen our advocacy work, we are building alliances and are in constant dialogue with health stakeholders in Europe, working together on delivering positive change at policy level across Europe.
To ensure that our messages reflect the united voice of the broad community we represent, UEG engages in a series of public awareness campaigns every year.
Building on our long-standing relations with WHO Europe, we welcomed WHO Europe Regional Director, Dr. Hans P. Kluge, at UEG Week in Copenhagen, where he participated in the panel discussion on "Hospitals in Crisis" and shared the European perspective on this major public health challenge.
Dr. Kluge also joined us for an in-depth interview to discuss the current challenges and future scenarios for public health in Europe, with a particular focus on the impact on digestive health.
With World Digestive Health Day on May 29, we celebrate Digestive Health Month each May with a public awareness campaign focused on on a particular digestive health-related topic.
Find Digestive Health Month content and discussions on Twitter via #DigestiveHealthMonth.
On February 4, we join the European cancer community in a global initiative to raise public awareness, improve education and drive government action.
In this context, we advocate for better research, prevention and treatment to reduce the social and economic burden of digestive cancers.
March is Colorectal Cancer (CRC) Awareness Month – a month long public awareness campaign focused on the importance of prevention, early diagnosis and burden of CRC. Every year, we disseminate information on the incidence of colorectal cancer and stress on the need for implementing screening programmes via social media and newsletters.
In 2023, we also supported Digestive Cancers Europe (DiCE) and their initiative for the European Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month (ECCAM): StepApp for CRC, a free mobile app that counts your steps.
On April 19, the global community unites to mark World Liver Day - a key moment dedicated to raising awareness about liver health and the growing burden of liver disease around the world. This initiative is driven by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), the Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL), the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), Asociación Latinoamericana para el Estudio del Hígado (ALEH), and the Society on Liver Disease in Africa (SOLDA), working together under the umbrella of the Healthy Livers, Healthy Lives Coalition.
UEG is proud to support this global campaign, standing alongside our partners to strengthen international awareness and action for liver health.
Visit the campaign website
November 20, 2025 marked World Pancreatic Cancer Day (WPCD).
Since publishing the 2024 Position Paper 'Pancreatic Cancer Across Europe', UEG and its partners - the European Pancreatic Club (EPC), Pancreatic Cancers Europe (PCE), Digestive Cancers Europe (DiCE) and Cancer Patients Europe (CPE) - have advanced efforts to turn its recommendations into action. Together, we continue to highlight the urgent need for earlier detection and greater research funding, driving collective progress across Europe.
Video message (WPCD 2024) - Matthias Löhr, UEG President (2024 – 2025)
Video message (WPCD 2024) - Patrick Michl, UEG Public Affairs Group Member
On November 4, 2025, we partnered with the European Alcohol Policy Alliance (Eurocare) and the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), to organise 'Rethinking Prevention: A Dialogue with Youth' at the European Parliament in Brussels.
Hosted by MEP Manuela Ripa and MEP Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis, the event aimed to put youth perspectives at the heart of the discussion on alcohol prevention. Policymakers, young health professionals and youth advocates came together for an open, evidence-based dialogue on how future prevention policies can better meet the needs of younger generations.
As a member of the European Nutrition for Health Alliance (ENHA), UEG supported Malnutrition Awareness Week 2025, a pan-European initiative raising awareness of disease-related malnutrition and access to high-quality nutritional care.
The campaign focused on nutritional support in care pathways and empowering patients to take an active role in their nutrition. UEG expert Lucas Wauters contributed to a Policy session at the European Parliament, advocating for stronger EU nutrition policies.
ENHA also hosted a patient-focused webinar to help individuals better understand their nutritional needs and risks. Together, these initiatives aimed to make nutritional care visible, accessible and recognised as a core part of healthcare across Europe.
