Home » Breast cancer, a site dedicated to genomic tests is born

Breast cancer, a site dedicated to genomic tests is born

by admin

55,000 women received a diagnosis of breast cancer in 2020. A third of whom, 15,000, are potentially candidates for genomic tests, tests that allow you to predict the risk of relapse and, therefore, to understand if it is possible avoid chemotherapy in addition to hormone therapy. In fact, it is estimated that in one year up to 10 thousand patients receive chemotherapy without real need in our country. For all of them and to clarify this topic, the site was born www.testgenomicitumoreseno.org, which aims to be a real agora where experts and patient representatives will find their voices through live streaming talk shows and video interviews, realized thanks to the unconditional contribution of Exact Sciences.

“Last December, the 2021 Budget Law established a Fund of 20 million euros for the direct reimbursement of expenses incurred by hospitals for the purchase of genomic tests in women with hormone-responsive breast cancer at an early stage – he explains. Francesco Cognetti, President of the Together Against Cancer Foundation and of FOCE (ConFederation of Oncologists, Cardiologists and Hematologists) -. Three months later, however, the implementation decree by the Ministry of Health is still missing to unlock these resources. Immediately guaranteeing access to genomic tests throughout the territory is a battle of civilization. Clinicians and patients ask for the provision to be issued as soon as possible “. “The appropriate use of tests – continues Cognetti – has a double advantage, because it allows both to avoid toxicity for a considerable number of women and waste for the health system. For each patient subjected to the test and for whom the chemotherapy treatment is inappropriate following the result of the examination, approximately 3,000 euros are saved due to the direct costs of the chemotherapy avoided. Overall, therefore, 30 million euros can be saved every year in our country ”.

See also  you can also make it at home

In-depth studies are planned on the new site, to photograph in real time the state of approval of the implementing decree. In Italy, genomic tests, recommended by the most important international guidelines and used in the main European countries, are free only in Lombardy, Tuscany and in the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, which have approved their reimbursement. “The provision included in the 2021 Budget Law which established the 20 million euro Fund is very important – underlines Cognetti -, because it goes in the direction of standardizing access to these molecular analyzes throughout the territory. Getting to the implementing decree quickly is an urgent goal, also to reduce the risk of contagion from Covid-19. For patients undergoing chemotherapy, the possibility of infection due to lowered immune defenses is high. Avoiding unnecessary chemotherapy is also a way to stem the pandemic ”.

When the diagnosis is in the early stage, after surgery, systemic treatment involves the use of hormone therapy in cases considered to be at low risk or the addition of adjuvant chemotherapy (i.e. after surgery) to hormone therapy, in the presence of a high risk. “The treatment path is chosen according to the histological, pathological and immunohistochemical characteristics of the tumor – explains Cognetti -. Genomic tests help the clinician to make the right treatment decision in women with hormone receptor positive breast cancer who are in a sort of gray area, because the likelihood of disease recovery and the benefit of any chemotherapy are difficult. to be established. They are therefore suitable for a particular subtype of patients, those with breast cancer of the luminal type, which expresses estrogen receptors but not the HER2 protein (ER + / HER2-), at intermediate risk “.

See also  The nostalgic professional wrestling game "BIG BANG PRO WRESTLING" debuts on the Switch platform

“These molecular analyzes – concludes Cognetti – provide a much more accurate estimate of the risk of relapse than traditional clinical-pathological parameters, identifying with greater precision the patients who can benefit from chemotherapy after surgery. The 21-gene test, Oncotype DX, is also capable of providing a prediction of the benefit of chemotherapy. “

You may also like

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Read More

Privacy & Cookies Policy