A first ‘mapping’ to understand at what point the various regions are with the vaccinations of cancer patients for which priority has been requested by many. The picture of the situation is provided by the confederation of oncologists, haematologists and cardiologists (Foce) which had already taken action on this front last February. The survey shows that, thanks to some regions (Lazio, Veneto and Calabria) that had already decided to accept the request made by Foce last February and to anticipate the Ministerial decisions, today about 11,000 cancer patients have been secured.
The Foce survey
On 23 March Foce collected the data to take stock of the situation in the various Italian regions, in the oncological Irccs and other structures, and in particular the data of the Lazio Region, which together with Veneto and Calabria had anticipated the measures of the Ministry of Health. It emerged that Lazio has already vaccinated 6025 cancer patients, Veneto 3.400 and Calabria 1.500. “These Regions – he declares Francesco Cognetti, president of Foce – are already completing the vaccination of these patients. We have thus already secured around 11,000 cancer patients. All this represents an incentive for all the other Regions to do quickly and well. It is important that these vaccinations are carried out by the treating specialists who are also responsible for the selection of candidate patients in accordance with the clinical characteristics illustrated in the ministerial decree and that these vaccinations take place in the same treatment centers where these patients are followed “.
Foce’s requests
The results of this first map were also sent today for information to Maria Stella Gelmini, Minister for Regional Affairs and Autonomies and to Roberto Speranza, Minister of Health, in which Foce traces the stages of the various requests presented since last February when with a note addressed to the then Extraordinary Commissioner of the Covid-19 emergency, Domenico Arcuri, and to the President of the Superior Council of Health? , Franco Locatelli, requested the anticipation of vaccination of a category of ultra fragile patients, including 150,000 cancer patients and 70,000 oncohematological patients undergoing active treatment or treated in the last 6 months. “After various other requests – continues Cognetti – on March 10, the interim recommendations on the ‘target groups of anti Covid-19 vaccinations’ were issued by the Ministry of Health and the Extraordinary Commissioner for the emergency. In this document, Foce’s request was finally accepted as regards the anticipation of vaccination procedures for fragile oncological, haematological and cardiological patients “.
Sending the data to the Ministries
Following the actions taken by Foce and to allow the Ministries to have a clear and defined picture of the state of vaccinations currently relating to oncological and haematological patients in our country, the specialists sent the data of the Survey with the situation in the various regions. “I am sure that these data collected by us on the basis of indications provided to us by the Directors of the Medical Oncology and Hematology Structures of the various centers consulted – writes Cognetti in the letter addressed to the Minister – will be particularly useful in order to promote any possible action that you deem suitable for the objective of the greatest possible diffusion of vaccination practices in these particularly fragile patients “.
Trust in vaccinations
Although most of the regions have yet to start with vaccinations for cancer patients, there is the firm belief that only by taking action in this direction can we get out of it: “We are firmly convinced – concludes Cognetti – that the immediate vaccination of these and of the other frail patients together with citizens over eighty, whose vaccination is still very slow and largely insufficient, is the most valid system, together with certainly the contagion containment measures, to reduce mortality among those infected by Covid , which persists extremely high in our country, the highest in Europe “.
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