ESA Patron Vytenis Andriukaitis echoes call for a European Sepsis Plan at 9th ESA Annual Meeting

In his address to the 9th Annual Meeting of the European Sepsis Alliance, ESA Patron Vytenis Andriukaitis delivered a strong call to translate political commitments on sepsis into concrete action across Europe.

Reflecting on the ESA’s landmark Call to Action launched at the European Parliament last year, he stressed that progress must now be matched by implementation. Despite growing awareness, major gaps remain, leaving millions of Europeans at risk.

Highlighting the scale of the challenge, Andriukaitis pointed to the latest estimates of 1.27 million sepsis-related deaths annually in the EU, underlining that many of these deaths are preventable with stronger political will and coordinated action. He also emphasized the close link between sepsis and antimicrobial resistance, describing sepsis as its “human face.”

Andriukaitis echoed WHO Europe Regional Director Hans Kluge’s call for a comprehensive European Sepsis Plan. He welcomed the support of WHO Europe and called for sepsis to be fully integrated into EU health security, pandemic preparedness, and the broader European Health Union framework.

The ESA Patron also drew attention to the critical intersection between sepsis and cancer. With cancer patients facing a tenfold higher risk of developing sepsis—and a mortality rate of around 50% among those affected, he urged policymakers to embed sepsis prevention, early detection, and management into national cancer plans.

Concluding his remarks, he called on EU institutions and Member States to act decisively: establish clear metrics, allocate dedicated resources, and ensure coordinated implementation across agencies.

“By working together across borders and disciplines,” he noted, “we can save over a million lives each year.”