DEPRESSION, fears and anxiety, irritability, loss of control over one’s life, feelings of helplessness, guilt and shame, but also anger and the desire for revenge. These are the psychopathological effects in patients affected by mesothelioma, the cancer associated with exposure to asbestos (and which develops in the cells of the mesothelium, the membranes that cover, like a thin film, the internal organs). A mental illness that in some cases manifests itself in severe forms not only in patients, but also in their family members. For this reason, various national and European scientific associations aim at an integrated management of patients and caregivers that takes into account the interrelation between the physical, psychological and environmental aspects of the disease, to address the somato-psychic impact of diagnosis and treatment. . This objective led to the birth of a study on the efficacy of a Brief Psychoanalytic Group therapy (BPG) intervention model.
Telemedicine, Puglia launches its platform for the remote management of chronic patients
by Elisa Manacorda
PsyCare, the online group psychotherapy platform
The Department of Psychology of the University of Turin and the SS. Antonio and Biagio and C. Arrigo of Alessandria, the Santo Spirito Hospital of Casale Monferrato and the SS Corporate Psychology and SC Medical Oncology of the San Giovanni Bosco Hospital of the ASL City of Turin and the Cottolengo Hospital Health Unit. With the pandemic, the research group entered into an agreement to use the PsyCare software, an Italian platform dedicated to psychologists and psychotherapists, which allows online group therapy through specific features. This is the first attempt at remote BPG for mesothelioma patients and their families.
Melanoma and mesothelioma: thus immunotherapy changes the scenario. Again
by Tiziana Moriconi
Asbestos: the contaminated area of Casale Monferrato
The research group started the study starting from the drama experienced in Casale Monferrato, where asbestos contamination caused the death of 392 people from mesothelioma – 62 former employees of the Eternit company and 330 citizens – generating a great sense of fear and concern. throughout the community. “From the interviews with about 100 people between patients and family members, carried out over the years, it emerged that the probability of getting sick has a huge impact on the entire community exposed to contamination and can produce strong psychopathological effects”, explains a Salute Antonella Granieri, professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Turin, director of the School of Specialization in Clinical Psychology, psychoanalyst of the Italian Psychoanalytic Society and coordinator of the study. Clinical investigations have revealed post-traumatic stress disorders in both patients and their families and a tendency to express discomfort through somatic symptoms: “The problem of pathologies related to occupational and / or residential exposure to asbestos is very much alive – underlines Granieri – In areas with high exposure, such as the asbestos cement production poles of Casale Monferrato, the annual incidence rate of mesothelioma can even exceed 40% compared to other places “.
Mesothelioma, a new treatment from the combination of chemo and immunotherapy
by Tina Simoniello
Mesothelioma in Italy
Mesothelioma is a rare cancer that predominantly affects men. In Italy it represents 0.8% of all cancers diagnosed in men and 0.3% of those diagnosed in women. Depending on the area it covers, the mesothelium takes on different names: it is called pleura in the chest, peritoneum in the abdomen, pericardium around the heart and vaginal tunic in the area around the testicles. 90% of mesotheliomas are due to exposure to asbestos and as it usually takes a few decades (around 40-50 years) before the eventual onset of the disease, estimates indicate that the number of diagnoses will continue to rise in the coming years and will reach the peak between the second and third decade of the 2000s.
disgust 2021
Mesothelioma, how to understand who will respond to immunotherapy
The first remote short group psychotherapy
The study is about to start the second part in the online mode with the support of the PsyCare platform: 12 meetings will be held, of one hour each week, with 15-20 people between patients and family members, conducted by psychologists, psychotherapists and psychology specialists clinic. This type of intervention has already been tested in person through the collaboration with the Simple Departmental Unit ‘Mesothelioma’ of the Alessandria Hospital and ASL-A1. “Brief group psychotherapy represents the most appropriate model to bring out the multiple narratives of somato-psychic pain and to share specific bodily expressiveness in the face of the trauma of the disease”, continues the study coordinator: “In this way it becomes possible both to think in a different way to the physical discomfort, pain and anger associated with illness, than to strengthen family and social bonds. With the platform we will be able to carry out the study, activating a psycho-telemedicine project that will allow to validate the results also in online mode “. The effectiveness of the model will be tested by multiple question and answer psychological tests administered to the participants before and after the meetings.
Blood cancers, so the patient is followed online
by Tina Simoniello
What awaits us?
The collaboration between the healthcare companies involved aims to support patients and prevent them from feeling alone and helpless in the face of such a serious disease, to support family members in the role of cargiver and to develop new strategies to deal with the disease. “We want to offer an effective response to the needs of support and care and to the psychological distress of patients and family members – concludes Granieri – by defining an adequate psychological-clinical treatment methodology even remotely, which can also be used in other healthcare contexts”.
Image credits: Timothy Muza on Unsplash