“We urgently need a ‘recovery plan’ for oncology, in order to make up for the delays in the assistance to cancer patients, a plan that covers from diagnosis to surgery, medical therapy and radiotherapy”.
Saverio Cinieri, President of the Italian Association of Medical Oncology is launching the call, having noted the delays on the diagnosis and treatments caused by Covid pandemic. “The damages for people affected by cancer – Cinieri explains – risk becoming very severe, as the success of the treatment depends on the short period of time by which the surgical procedure is done”. “Without adequate planning, that involves an allocation of resources and specific personnel, the oncologist of our Country won’t be able to face the rash of late stage cancer cases estimated in the next months and years. During these weeks, the new wave of pandemic caused by the Omicron variant is putting a strain on oncology departments’ management and the planned surgical procedures have been suspended or slowed down, as intensive care units are packed by Covid patients”.
Every year in Italy almost 377.000 new cancer cases are diagnosed. The high level of cancer care in our Country is highlighted by a survival rate of 5 years, which reaches 65% in women and 59% in men. Moreover, during 6 years (2015-2021), it has been noted a general decrease in cancer mortality rates of 10% in men and 8% in women. However, it should be stressed that in 2020 “new diagnoses of neoplasia have decreased by 11% compared to 2019, new pharmacological treatments by 13%, surgical interventions by 18%.
Not only – it’s written in the notice published by the AIOM – screening for breast, cervical and colorectal cancer have registered a decrease of two and half millions of exams in 2020 compared to 2019. Missed diagnoses have been considered too: over 3300 for breast cancer, around 1300 for colorectal cancer (and 7474 less adenomas) and 2782 precancerous lesions of uterine cervix”. “The neoplasms, not detected in 2020, are now coming to light, but in more advanced stages and with worse prognosis than in the period before the pandemic – explains President Cinieri -. Furthermore, these pathologies also present an increased tumour burden, i.e. widespread metastasis, with clinical pictures that we had not seen in a long time”.
Important data that assume even greater importance in the anniversary of the World Cancer Day, established by the Union for International Cancer Control and which takes place every year on February the 4th.
The goal of the anniversary is to prevent millions of death every year by raising the awareness and the education about cancer and by encouraging governments and people all over the world to acting against the disease.
In Italy this very day, in more than 7.000 points of sale throughout the country, it will be possible to choose “Blood Oranges for research”: for each carton sold, EUR 0,50 will be donated to the Italian Association for Cancer Research. Only in 2021, over EUR 310.000,00 were donated to research thanks to this initiative
