PHILOSOPHY 

 

We are a European network of Melanoma patients and patient advocate that as a community 

 

• educates and shares knowledge relevant to Melanoma such as novel therapies, clinical trials, access schemes, research results, updates about regulatory and Health Technology Assessment decisions.

• participates in research and innovation projects to ensure that results matter to patients and are implemented fast and equitably.

• develop concepts, methods and tools for patient advocacy and build capacity by sharing successful advocacy projects, knowledge and resources and support others to get started in patient advocacy.

• creates a platform to interact as a group with other stakeholders and to serve as a neutral convenor- e.g. researchers and research funders, the European Medicines Agency, EMA, HTA bodies, investors, diagnostic and pharmaceutical companies, healthcare professionals, policy-makers, payers. 

• contributes, collaborates and shares knowledge with communities beyond Melanoma because many issues are not Melanoma-specific and all patient communities benefit by sharing expertise and avoiding duplication. 

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Agency

Our aim is agency in Melanoma: Melanoma patients who can make informed treatment choices and who can interact in an appropriate way with other stakeholders to drive and contribute to constructive solutions to the problems of the Melanoma community in Europe and beyond.

 

Access  

We believe that all European Melanoma patients should have access to accurate information in their own language and support appropriate to their cultural context- which is a formidable challenge considering the European cultural and language diversity.

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Connection 

MPNE advocates are therefore the connectors between the European Melanoma network communicating in English and national networks in the respective native language. 

This allows us to communicate efficiently across many potential language barriers, collaborate where appropriate and learn from each other to address country-specific issues.

 

Community

As a community of volunteers, MPNE operates with a strong principle of subsidiarity. We believe that people have the highest chance to make a real difference for Melanoma patients when they work in areas they deeply care about and where they have access to particular insights or expertise. We can’t tell people what they should care about- but as community, we can help everyone to make progress on the topics they are most passionate about. 

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