Life after cancer: why the ‘right to be forgotten’ matters
5 November 2025
The right to be forgotten is not about compassion – it is about evidence and justice.
Every year, more than 3.7 million people in Europe hear the words ‘you have cancer’. While the disease was once viewed as a death sentence, treatment and early detection have significantly improved survival rates; there are nearly 20 million people living beyond cancer in Europe. And while many people achieve good health post-treatment, their medical history can cast a long shadow – particularly when they try to access financial services including loans, mortgages, and health and travel insurance.
What is the ‘right to be forgotten’?
The right to be forgotten refers to the right of people living their life beyond cancer without encountering discrimination based on their past diagnosis. Once a person is considered cured or in long-term remission, this right means that insurers and financial institutions cannot use a past diagnosis to deny services or inflate costs, provided a certain number of years have passed since treatment.
It is a principle rooted in dignity, equity and data protection. It enables people to manage their personal information so they are not forever affected by a condition they no longer have. The right to be forgotten supports reintegration, offers psychological closure and legal reassurance, and helps reduce discrimination.
While many people achieve good health post-treatment, their medical history can cast a long shadow – particularly when they try to access financial services including loans, mortgages, and health and travel insurance.
The need for legislation in Europe
Despite advances in cancer treatment and growing recognition of survivors’ rights, many people in Europe still face significant financial penalties because of their medical history. In some countries, survivors encounter steep insurance premiums, barriers to securing mortgages, and ongoing discrimination – even years after recovery. A 2019 survey conducted by the Dutch Federation of Cancer Patient Organizations found that 60% of respondents living beyond cancer were unable to obtain a life insurance policy. Of these, over half were rejected by their insurer due to their previous cancer diagnosis, and a quarter of them rejected the offer from the insurer because the cost was too high.
Momentum for the right to be forgotten is building; it is a priority in Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, which calls for fair access to financial services by improving practices and developing a code of conduct with businesses. The right is also included in the 2023 Consumer Credit Directive, shifting the focus from voluntary cooperation to mandatory national implementation. By 2025, EU Member States are expected to transpose it to national law.
So far, nine countries have taken legislative steps: France (2016), Belgium (2020), the Netherlands (2021), Portugal (2022), Romania (2022), Spain (2023), Cyprus (2023), Italy (2023) and Slovenia (2024). Five more – the Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Ireland and Luxembourg – support the right through self-regulatory codes of conduct or government–insurer conventions. However, while these efforts are commendable, they do not offer the same level of protection or consistency.
Even where there is legislation, rules vary widely. For adults, the amount of time required post-treatment ranges from 5 to 10 years depending on the country. Some countries, including France and Belgium, use reference tables to shorten waiting periods for cancers with excellent prognosis; these tables are regularly updated to align with the latest scientific evidence. Some countries have limitations on loan amounts and contract types. For example, in the Netherlands, coverage limits (adjusted every three years) for life insurance or funeral insurance are set at €353,200 as of 2025; this means that people do not need to disclose a past cancer diagnosis after a period of time if their coverage is under this limit.
The European Parliament has called for harmonised standards, recommending that the right to be forgotten be granted within 10 years after treatment (or 5 years for people under 18).
The Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan’s implementation findings from October 2025 highlight the uneven implementation of the right to be forgotten, noting challenges such as divergent national priorities, varying degrees of political commitment and inconsistent availability of reliable data on cancer care and survivorship.
The deadline for the Consumer Credit Directive transposition is 20 November 2025, with a further year for implementation. Several countries still have nothing in place.
Towards a fairer future
The European Parliament has called for harmonised standards, recommending that the right to be forgotten be granted within 10 years after treatment (or 5 years for people under 18). It has also supported incorporating the right into EU legislation to harmonise credit assessments and facilitate access to financial services.
Despite this, the Consumer Credit Directive set a 15-year timeline, which many experts and patient advocates argue is too long, and implementation was left to individual countries. Evidence from France and other jurisdictions shows that five years after treatment – in the absence of relapse – is a clinically and legally sound threshold for invoking the right to be forgotten.
At present, the only strategy endorsed by the European Commission is a voluntary code of conduct among stakeholders, as proposed in Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan. The code of conduct aims to create an agreement between insurers and patient organisations to provide fair access to financial services.
However, despite multiple consultations and roundtables, stakeholders have not reached a consensus, even though it was expected to be agreed by March 2024. And this non-binding approach does not provide adequate or consistent protection for people living beyond cancer in all Member States. A more robust political commitment and comprehensive legislative harmonisation at the European level are essential to uphold the right to be forgotten.
A future without financial fear
When an oncologist says, ‘You’re cured’, why should a financial institution be allowed to decide otherwise? Cancer survival should be a turning point, not a lifelong label. As treatment evolves, so must our laws. By embracing the right to be forgotten across Europe, we can help people living beyond cancer reclaim their lives – free from stigma, worry and the burden of a disease they are free of.