They are specialized centers, where experts are compared and patient survival is better. In Italy there are 256: a site helps to find them
Where do I go to be treated? the first question that every patient asks himself as soon as he receives a diagnosis, especially if the disease in question is as scary as the breast cancer. The advice is to always rely on expert hands which, in the case of a mammary neoplasm, can be found in a Breast Unit. To ease the 55 thousand Italian women that every year they discover that they have this pathology, the experts of the Italian Association of Medical Oncology (Aiom) announced, during the national congress just concluded in Rome, a new initiative that also includes a web portal with the contacts of the individual Breast Units operating on the National territory.
What is a Breast Unit (in Italy there are 265)
Several researches have clearly shown that in Breast Units the best survival: those who turn to them live longer (and better) because a multidisciplinary approach is guaranteed. But what is a Breast Unit in essence? A specialized breast center, where adherence to guidelines is higherthe experience of the specialists is improved and the adoption of a multidisciplinary approach. At a European level, it has been established that only the structures that treat at least 150 new cases of breast cancer every year can be defined as Breast Units – he explained Michelino De Laurentiis, director of the Department of Breast and Thoraco-Pulmonary Oncology at the National Cancer Institute Irccs Pascale Foundation of Naples -. The multidisciplinary is the founding element, i.e. each patient is evaluated and followed by a group of specialists who includes surgeon, radiotherapist, pathologist, oncologist, psychologist and several other important figures. Like, for example, experts in fertility preservation, valuable and essential for young patients who want in the future become moms.
Teamwork
We want improve the level of information in Italyincrease the number of early diagnoses and thus save more lives – he said Saverio Cinieri, president of Aiom and director of the Medical Oncology and Breast Unit of the Perrino Hospital in Brindisi -. The Breast Unit must be the only center that follows a woman throughout her care path. Only in this way are we able to offer qualified and multidisciplinary assistance to patients. also thanks to “teamwork”Which have increased in recent years survival rates ed improved quality of life of breast cancer patients. The woman is taken care of by a team of professionals and by work groups that study the individual case, identify the most suitable therapy, the possible surgical procedure and then the subsequent treatments. For the new national campaign Breast-carcinoma of the breastmade possible with the contribution of Novartis, a strong social activity and a national conference are also planned to better outline the paths of the patients and improve their quality of life. Clinicians, patient associations and institutional representatives will participate in the event. On the website www.breastunit.info it is then possible to find the main information on breast cancer (prevention, early diagnosis, screening, symptoms, therapy).
Choose group therapies
Today we have many weapons at our disposal against breast cancer, from chemotherapy to hormone therapy to target therapies to immunotherapy and we reach unthinkable results only ten years ago – underlined De Laurentiis -. thanks to the successes in the early diagnosis and the new therapies that 88% of patients live today 5 years after diagnosis. And thanks to research we have also made progress against the most aggressive forms and those in the metastatic stage. We know they exist dozens of different subtypes of breast cancer and the parameters to be taken into consideration to establish the most suitable therapy in each individual case are numerous. an increasingly complex area and precisely for this purpose the comparison between the different specialists: evaluate together how to proceed. The important experience. Also, above all, if a man gets breast cancer: it happens a lot rarely (of the 55 thousand new diagnoses per year in our country, those in men are only 500), but to rely on a decisively prepared team.
The situation in Italy
According to the census presented by Aiom in Rome, in Italy they are active throughout the national territory (more in the North than in the South) 256 Breast Unit: 42 (16% of the total) manage less than 150 cases a year and therefore have volumes of activity lower than those recommended by the institutions. Since December 2014, a State-Regions agreement has established the Breast Health Centers – concludes Cinieri -. After eight years we find that these structures are effectively present throughout the entire national territory. The organization of some Units must be improved and, above all, it is essential that all the required parameters are respected. In addition to the number of cases, the fundamental year that there is actually the presence of all six different professionals: radiologist, surgeon, pathologist, oncologist, radiotherapist and data manager. Still too rarely, Italian cancer patients (including those with breast cancer) receive the psychological support they need to stem fear, anger, anguish, sleep and emotional disturbances. Anxiety and depressive disorders significantly interfere with both adherence to care, while with concrete help the lives of patients and caregivers can be greatly improved.
October 5, 2022 (change October 6, 2022 | 14:12)
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