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Improving cancer care while reducing its carbon footprint: GHG-mitigating strategies highlighted at ESMO 2025

Matthieu Delaye1, Paul Matte2, Anthony Turpin3

  • 1Institut Curie, Department of Medical Oncology, Versailles Saint-Quentin University, Saint-Cloud, France. matthieu.delaye@curie.fr.

BJC Reports
|June 11, 2026
PubMed
Abstract

Insights

Cancer care strategies can significantly lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Research presented at ESMO 2025 showed improved patient outcomes alongside reduced environmental impact from oncology treatments.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Environmental Science
  • Public Health

Background:

  • The environmental impact of cancer care, including greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, is a growing concern.
  • Limited data exists on therapeutic strategies that incidentally reduce the carbon footprint of oncology.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify clinically validated approaches presented at the 2025 ESMO Congress that could lower the carbon footprint of cancer care.
  • To assess strategies for reducing drug use, visit frequency, treatment duration, and overall care intensity.

Main Methods:

  • Review of all abstracts from the 2025 ESMO Congress.
  • Selection of studies indicating potential reductions in resource utilization.
  • Estimation of GHG emissions using the ECOVAMED drug carbon-footprint database and standard emission factors.

Main Results:

  • Ten abstracts were identified, covering primary prevention, de-escalation, dose/duration reduction, biomarker-guided therapy, and non-pharmacological interventions.
  • Several strategies showed non-inferior or improved clinical outcomes with substantial reductions in treatment-related emissions.
  • None of the selected studies explicitly assessed the environmental impact.

Conclusions:

  • Multiple strategies presented at ESMO 2025 demonstrate potential for improving patient outcomes while reducing the environmental burden of cancer care.
  • Systematic integration of environmental endpoints into clinical research is crucial for advancing sustainable oncology practices.

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