Nine out of 10 men manage to recover from testicular cancer and in 70% of cases they do not have to give up paternity. Two good news coming from the V National Conference of the Italian Germ cell cancer Group (IGG) entitled The evolving scenario of the male germ cell tumors. The scientific event takes place today in Milan with the participation of oncologists, urologists, radiotherapists, medical specialists from all over Italy and the Italian Testicular Cancer Association (AITT) which has been working closely with clinicians for years.
93% of patients recover
Over 63,000 men in Italy are living with germline testicular cancer, a highly treatable disease that should not be underestimated. As many as 93% of patients are disease-free five years after diagnosis and can be considered cured. The treatments are effective, with fewer and fewer side effects, but still have a strong impact on the person’s life. “It is a neoplasm in which the results in terms of healing are excellent – he underlines Ugo De Giorgi, Director of Clinical and Experimental Oncology at IRCCS Romagnolo Institute for the Study of Tumors (IRST) Dino Amadori and Secretary of IGG. “However, the diagnosis of the tumor has not negligible consequences on the patient’s life”.
Preserve paternity
The testicle is an organ strongly associated with masculinity, the sexual sphere and obviously also fertility. The disease mainly affects men under the age of 40 and a recovered patient has the right to return to a normal life. Among the most significant improvements, the possibility of preserving fertility. Today paternity, after the administration of the therapies, is reached in over 70% of cases. “Today, fertility can be preserved even for those who have undergone the removal of the organ and then received chemo or radiotherapy”, explains De Giorgi. “However, it is necessary to include the patient in an adequate path of assistance and establish which examinations to carry out, with what timing, whether or not to involve the andrologist or other specialists”. The support of patient associations is fundamental: “The Italian Testicular Cancer Association – he specifies Nicola Nicolaihead of the Complex Structure of Urology and Testicular Surgery, Istituto Nazionale Tumori (INT) Milan and president of IGG – is very active with various initiatives, at multiple levels, including social media, and its promoter Domenico Di Nardo has been involved for some time in the drafting of the national guidelines Aiom in collaboration with IGG and recently also in the European ones of the European society of urology (UAE) “.
The news of the research
The latest news in medical-scientific research is also illustrated at the Milan conference. “We present new national and international studies – he continues Franco NolèDirector of Urogenital and Cervical Facial Medical Oncology of the European Institute of Oncology (IEO) and President of the IGG Conference –. In fact, in testicular cancer, “traditional” treatments, such as surgery or chemotherapy, are effective and guarantee excellent results even in advanced forms of disease. We are therefore concentrating on the in-depth analysis of the genetic-molecular characteristics and on the familiarity of cancer. We are conducting studies, also in our country, on the use of new biomarkers for the early detection of disease recurrence ”. “It is a form of cancer on which we still need to work – he concludes Paolo Andrea Zucali, Head of Oncology of the genitourinary tract of the Humanitas Cancer Center of Rozzano and President of the IGG Conference -. In Italy we are able to guarantee patients excellent assistance, Italian patients have among the highest chances of treatment in Europe. Some of our centers are also of reference at an international level because they have the highest volumes of activity at European level. This applies to the provision of complex treatments such as retroperitoneal surgery or high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell transplant ”.