The aim of the video, conceived and shot at the Pascale Cancer Institute in Naples, is to raise the awareness of the greatest number of individuals on the progress of research: before immuno-oncology, less than 10% of people affected by the neoplasm were alive at 5 years.
Gabriele Murgolo was 17 when melanoma took him away a year ago, despite the most innovative therapies he had received. Gabriele belongs to that 50% of patients who for science still represents a failure: if in fact, thanks to the arrival of immunotherapy, almost one in two patients is saved today, much still remains to be done to defeat the most lethal skin cancer. , whose cases in Italy are constantly increasing. The short film “Amici per la pelle” was born from this story, presented at the Posillipo cine theater in Naples. “About ten years ago, in 2011, only one in four patients with advanced melanoma was still alive one year after diagnosis, today half survive for several years – underlines Paolo Ascierto, director of the Melanoma Immunotherapy and Innovative Therapies department of the ‘Pascale Cancer Institute of Naples and creator of the initiative -. So much so that we can say that we have transformed it into a chronic disease, which can be kept under control by continuing to lead one’s life ».
The third most common type of cancer in those under the age of 50
In 2011 it was shown that with immunotherapy, then a very new strategy (in a few years it became the fourth cancer treatment strategy, alongside surgery, radiotherapy and drugs), it was possible to make progress in patient survival where 30 years had not made any progress. Thus in 10 years, in Italy, people living after the diagnosis of melanoma have increased by almost 70%: they were 100,910 in 2010, they went to 169,900 in 2020. The importance of the progress made in the fight against this form of cancer has even more important if we consider that cases are constantly growing: in 2020, 14,900 new diagnoses are estimated, with an increase of 20% in 12 months. And the patients are getting younger, with an increasing number of 40-year-olds: it is in fact the third most common type of cancer in the population under 50. Patients are increasingly younger, with an increasing number of 40-year-olds: it is in fact the third most common type of cancer in the population under the age of 50. The reasons? «Probably a lot is due to bad habits towards ultraviolet radiation, natural and artificial – answers Ascierto -. Still too many compatriots do not protect themselves as they should in the sun and end up getting burned. Just as many have not understood the real risks associated with tanning lamps. A careful check of the skin and a visit to the doctor if you notice any anomalies (such as moles that change shape or color) is important to discover a possible neoplasm in time: if detected in the initial stages, in fact, melanoma can heal definitively with the only surgical removal “.
The short film
The short film immediately received the support of the duo of actors Gigi and Ross, aka Luigi Esposito and Rosario Morra, shared by the director general of Pascale, Attilio Bianchi, from the Melanoma Foundation, of which Ascierto is president, created by the artistic director Romano Montesarchio, from the Bronx Film production, from director Angela Bevilacqua and from the unconditional contribution of Bristol Myers Squibb. The two protagonists are called Tony and Flavio, the short lasts just over ten minutes, among the actors also another fellow of Made in Sud, Alessandro Bolide, all extras real nurses. In the video, two patients, played by Gigi and Ross, entrust themselves to the care of Paolo Ascierto (the scenes were shot in his department at Pascale and in the Ascalesi clinics): suffering from metastatic melanoma, both must undergo immunotherapy, but only one of the two remains alive. In the finale, half happy, lies the whole meaning of the initiative. «Friends for the skin – say Gigi & Ross – is a project that has excited us a lot from the beginning. Both because when Dr. Paolo Ascierto, to whom we are very attached, decided to get involved, we did not hesitate to say yes, and because the title was perfectly in keeping with who we are. It’s a little story about friendship, hope and love. Three fundamental feelings destined to live forever ».
Melanoma today
«Before immunotherapy, the life expectancy of patients with metastatic melanoma was about 6 months and less than 10% were alive at 5 years – says the Neapolitan oncologist -. Thanks to research, today it can be said that melanoma has turned into a chronic disease that can be kept under control but only for fifty percent. The new therapies and combinations of investigational drugs give hope of being able to offer curative solutions to an increasing number of patients. The attention of the research now must be turned to the other fifty percent who unfortunately still do not have the expected benefits from the available therapies. The immediate challenge is to increase the effectiveness of treatments to overcome resistance to immuno-oncology, which prevents about half of patients from benefiting from it. “” Confidence in therapy and in daily research progress is the best way to combat fear and increase awareness of prevention – concludes the director general of Pascale, Attilio Bianchi -. Prevention, research and innovative therapies are the drivers within which the strategies implemented by Pascale move. I want to express my deep gratitude for participating in our campaign to raise awareness of the actors, the director, the producer ».
December 16, 2021 (change December 16, 2021 | 07:18)
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