The incidence of cancer in women is on the rise: in 2020 there were about 6,000 new cases more than the previous year. In total there are over 1 million and 922 thousand patients who today live with a neoplasm. And among female cancers, breast and ovarian cancers seem to have a greater impact on the emotional sphere. This is what emerged today in the meeting “Woman and Cancer, from the bench to bedside”, a virtual training event that took place under the patronage of the Italian Association of Medical Oncology (AIOM).
“Breast cancer accounts for more than 14% of all new cancer diagnoses in Italy,” he says Nicla La Verde, National Councilor of AIOM and Director of Oncology of the Sacco Hospital in Milan, as scientific director of the webinar: “Despite the important progress achieved in the therapeutic field and the spread of screening, even today this cancer has high rates of morbidity and mortality “. Ovarian cancer, on the other hand, affects a total of 49,800 women and is a particularly insidious disease.
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“In recent years – continues the oncologist – thanks to the identification of genetic mutations and molecular alterations responsible for carcinogenesis processes, we have been able to identify innovative drugs capable of acting selectively on specific molecular targets.
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Surgery and medical therapies, however, often distort and force you to redesign your way of being and feeling a woman. This is why a multidisciplinary approach is essential, which includes close collaboration and integration of the knowledge of various specialists “. Such as oncologists, gynecologists, senologists, pathologists, fertility experts, physiotherapists, psychologists.
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“Today, for example, it is possible to combine the desire for motherhood with the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Furthermore, numerous scientific studies have shown that having a child does not increase the chances of cancer recurrence ”. The goal must be to defeat the disease and protect psycho-physical well-being as much as possible in order to also ensure a good quality of life: “This – concludes La Verde – is even more valid for fragile cancer patients, such as those with HIV infection “.