At the heart of the international campaign is the importance of correct information, prevention and equal access to the best treatments for all. Experts in Italy are calling for a recovery plan for oncology
Close the care gap, that is eliminate disparities in care. this is the slogan chosen for the new one World Cancer Day which is celebrated on February 4th and is equally addressed to all people on the planet. For governments, institutions, politicians, citizens, patient associations, the elderly and young people the only goal: to unify efforts, each doing their part, in such a way as to concretely reduce the impact that cancer has on our lives. The day, at an international level, focuses on the power of knowledge and the elimination of inequalities – he comments Saverio Cinieri, president of the Italian Association of Medical Oncology (Aiom) -. Correct information can save lives, just think that over a third of cancer cases would be preventable by following a handful of good and simple rules for prevention and early diagnosis. And everyone’s commitment is needed to get to zero out the differences that are growing ever greater between poor and rich countries, but which also exist within different nations.
The 2022-2024 campaign
The estimates presented on the occasion of this year’s World Day focus on a number: it is expected that by 2030 as many as 75% of premature deaths from cancer will occur in low- and middle-income countries. But inequalities are also growing on the economic front (between those who can afford to pay for the best therapies and those who cannot or because of the impact that the disease has on work and expenses of the entire family) or socio-cultural, passing through gender differences, sexual orientation, ethnicity, ethnicity, levels of education and information. The new three-year campaign foresees an awareness of the problem by 2022 in order to build a future in which all people live in a healthier way, can have access to the best prevention and treatment tools, regardless of where they were born, they live , they work, by their age and sex. In 2023 the aim will be to unite voices and forces, to create alliances to arrive at concrete actions and in 2024 the focus will be more political, to get to directly involve those who govern the nations and put pressure on those who make decisions.
The numbers of cancer in the world and in Italy
Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide – remembers Cinieri, director of the medical oncology and Breast Unit of the Perrino Hospital in Brindisi -. Statistics from the International Cancer Agency predict that one in five men and one in six women will develop cancer in their lifetime. One in 10 males and one in 11 females will die. By 2040 it is expected that new cases per year, globally, will be 30 million, but as many as 3.7 million lives could be saved every year just by implementing the necessary resources on three fronts: prevention, early diagnosis and treatment. There are about 377 thousand new cases diagnosed every year in Italy. The high level of cancer care in our country highlighted both by the survival rates (higher than the rest of Europe) which at 5 years reach 65% in women and 59% in men, both from the drop in mortality and in six years (2015-2021) fell by 10% in men and 8% in women. Excellent results that risk being thwarted without adequate planning, because the fourth pandemic wave is further worsening an already critical situation – continues Cinieri -. We applaud the initiatives of the Government which, between the August decree and the latest budget law, allocated 1 billion euros to recover the interventions, screenings and visits postponed due to the pressure of Covid on hospitals. But that’s not enough. If a “recovery plan” is not defined, which also includes the strengthening of staff and facilities, we risk not being able to manage the next epidemic of advanced cases of cancer, also determined by the delays in assistance accumulated in the last two years .
So Covid has hit cancer patients
a tsunami as feared as widely foretold is the one that is gradually falling on Italian hospitals, for oncology and beyond: once again, for this fourth wave, many operating theaters have been closed because the intensive care beds are occupied by Covid patients and the damage to people affected by cancer risk being very serious, as the success of the treatment also depends on the short time in which the surgery is performed. The crisis in health care caused by the pandemic can no longer be tackled with impromptu initiatives as has happened so far, based on the opening and closing of wards in relation to the increase in the number of people infected by Covid-19 – underlines the president Aiom -. We ask the institutions to define medium and long-term planning. An oncology “recovery plan” is immediately needed to fill the delays in assisting cancer patients, from diagnosis to surgery, medical therapy and radiotherapy. We suffer in particular from the lack of staff and spaces. More resources are needed to invest in clinical, laboratory and epidemiological research as well. Today we know that up to 40% of cancers could be prevented by improving lifestyles (by quitting smoking, avoiding being overweight and maintaining a high level of physical activity) – he says. Franco Perrone, Aiom president-elect – but it is estimated that 16% of cancer deaths could be attributable to environmental exposures. In this sense, the next few years, in which it is hoped that the so-called ecological transition necessary to save the earth will take place on a global scale, are decisive: we must all work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and global warming and to do what in our possibilities to prevent cancer.
An oncology recovery plan
The data presented by Aiom on the occasion of the World Day photograph 371 Oncologies in our country, 85% of which have a psychological support service. Significant progress has been made in defining diagnostic-therapeutic and assistance paths (PDTA), essential for guaranteeing multidisciplinary assistance, as many as 1,375 documents have been approved by the oncological networks. Almost 80% of the facilities have a reference clinical nutrition. The critical issues concern in particular oncological home care, available only for 68% of the centers. The review of cancer care must not stop at the hospital, which is why the data on home care is still unsatisfactory – he concludes Massimo Di Maio, national secretary Aiom -. Poor communication between cancer centers and the local area causes delays in access to examinations and specialists during the diagnostic phase, with potential repercussions on the opportunities for early detection of the disease. This connection must be strengthened at the beginning of the care process, even before a person becomes a cancer patient. And as soon as active treatment begins, the general practitioner should be contacted to inform him of the purpose of the treatment, possible toxicities and the expected evolution of the clinical situation. Local doctors specialized in oncology are needed or all family doctors must be guaranteed intermediate training in the management of cancer patients. Investing in the local area can make cancer care more sustainable.
February 3, 2022 (change February 3, 2022 | 09:07)
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