Are milieus like Vision Zero Cancer a good way to accelerate innovation? At Stockholm School of Economics, doctoral student John-Erik Bergkvist is researching this – the methodology for building a vision-driven innovation milieu.

More and more patients need radiotherapy. But radiation therapy treatment is an area where research in Sweden has gone from leading to lagging behind internationally. How do we reverse the trend? How do we ensure that radiation therapy research continues to develop and become even better so that more patients survive and can live a better life with less side effects?

Research on cancer, and the standardised care pathways, are mostly based on set diagnoses and are mainly based on research done in secondary care. This became clear to General Practitioners Elinor Nemlander and Eliya Abedi – Sweden needs more primary care-focused research, based on symptoms and not diagnoses.

Fourteen. That's how many times, Mia Rajalin visited primary care before she received the chest X-ray that showed the tumor. And the X-ray referral was sent with hesitation – she was too young and had never smoked a cigarette.

The Lung Cancer Association wants to change lung cancer care. Especially in the case of early detection, where many other countries have already introduced tools and methods to support healthcare. But in Sweden it takes too long, says Karin Liljelund, the association's vice chairman. And lung cancer does not wait.

With national cancer care programs, standardized care processes and accessibility initiatives, cancer control in Sweden has come a long way in recent years. Now the focus will be on research and innovation. Among other things, through Vision Zero Cancer.